Compounding mortal sin?

[thistle]

Of course I get your points. And of course the worst punishment in Hell is the eternal separation from God.

But with all due respect, saying that is as useful as saying that the worst punishment prisoners suffer is the deprivation of their liberty, and that other punishments in jail are lesser. Both statements are true as far as they go, but in ignoring the existence of other punishments you are giving a very incomplete picture of Hell, as you would be of jail. The other punishments DO serve a significant purpose, otherwise no-one would bother employing them, would they?

And yes, of course all mortal sinners go to Hell. I don’t see why you’re even mentioning it, I’ve never disputed it

You, in your turn, seem to be missing MY point. Which is that, while all unrepentant mortal sinners DO go to Hell, not all will experience the same LEVEL of pain and punishment when they go there. The pains of Hell are, must be, much graver for those sinners who’ve committed much graver sins.

Do you in your turn agree with me that, since justice demands it, those with more/worse mortal sins on their soul will be punished more harshly in Hell?

And do you also agree with me that, since more or worse mortal sins mean more or worse punishment in Hell, that in itself is A reason (of course not the ONLY reason) to commit as few and the least grave mortal sins that one possibly can?

You’ve agreed with me that not all suffer alike in Hell, so I don’t see how you can NOT agree with me, or indeed really why we are arguing at all.

One of the problems is that we are trying to transfer our human earthly logic into what might or should happen in Hell. We have no clue what the punishments there are apart from the main one so we are simply speculating.
The only thing we know for sure (because it is what the Church teaches) is that there are punishments (plural) in Hell and that the chief punishment which applies to everyone there is eternal separation from God. That is the worst and most painful punishment there so why would anyone there care much if they get an additional punishment. There is nothing more harsh than separation from God.

I certainly agree with you that we should all try to be sin free, never mind keeping the number of sins down and every time we fall we should get to Confession as soon as possible because we don’t know when our time will be up!

 

[brianwalden]

Thinking about hell works for some people, but look at how many people have a hard time planning for their retirement that’s only a few decades away. If they can’t plan for life after retirement how will they plan for life after death.

It may also be helpful to look at the immediate effects of sin. Every sin hurts your soul’s abililty to receive and respond to God’s grace, every sin increases concupiscence in your heart, and every sin has real-world consequences that effect those around you.

 

[WatchingMedia]

No, you do not compound one mortal sin.
But you can commit more motal sins.
Confess each different mortal sin individually.
If it is the same sin more than once - say the number of times commited.

For example: I have missed Mass 4 times since my last confession.
or
I missed Mass once since my last confession.
I’m not married, and I have had sex with a woman once.
I am a man, and I have had sex with a man twice.
I used artificial birth control twice since my last confession.
I purposely viewed pornography five times since my last confession.

Remember everyone, you may not receive the Holy Eucharist when in the state of mortal sin.
Further, your sins are NOT forgiven without a firm purpose of amendment to commit them no more.

 

[Newbie2]

I think he would be compounding his sin of rape by NOT using a condom. Think about the reasons why the Church doesn’t allow condoms. Now, why would it apply to a rapist?

Senario one: rapist rapes a woman, no condom, and potentially can get her pregnant and pass along any diseases. Senario two: But according to the Catholic Church it would be a worse sin for him to use a condom, thereby limiting the woman’s exposure? No offense Newbie2, because I’m sure it’s a question many people have, but for me, it’s not even worth asking my priest about. I don’t know what the Church teaches on this one, and I’m not sure I care in this case…

Well, I’m sure that there are other examples that one could come up with to illustrate or ask the question about compounding mortal sin. Hopefully, it’s not a practical question for anyone on the CAF