Crazy question about mortal sin

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Veronica97

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This is going to sound crazy but this is the situation. MIL and FIL are getting up in years and their stairway going down to the basement is not the safest. So SILs and I got together and made the decision that a new, safer stairway with landing needs to be built by a carpenter. Well, SIL wanted me to get on the internet to find a picture of such a stairway in order for FIL to show the carpenter what we want b/c he would not be able to explain it to the carpenter. Well, there was a pix on the internet of such a stairway, but with a girl in a skimpy bikini standing on the landing. SIL thought that was funny and encouraged me more than once to print that one. I really didn’t want to but I thought I might be being scrupulous (b/c I AM scrupulous), but even as I was trying to print it I was thinking, “What if FIL makes a cute comment about the pix and MIL gets mad?” Or “What if the pix causes the carpenter to sin?” The good thing is, my printer chose that moment NOT to work! I was so HAPPY! So there is no chance of anyone sinning b/c the pix did not print. But I am afraid I sinned by INTENDING to print the pix. Is this a mortal sin and should I go to confession? I just went to confession two days ago, but I will go again if this is grave matter.
 
Ok, you may be scrupulous. However, it’s better to abound in scruples than to be lukewarm and oversee sins.

As you know well by now, three things are necessary for a sin to be mortal:
  • grave matter
  • full knowledge (are you sure this is a mortal sin?)
  • deliberate consent (did you deliberately consent to sin?)
While only a confessor can discern this (and, hey, weekly confession is recommended even for venial sins and imperfections!) I would say that this does not look like mortal sin. Even “SIL” does not seem to have a lustful or offensive intention according to your description: “thought that was funny”. Why, I am not sure 🤷

To find further peace of mind, consider this: why were you printing that picture? What was your intention? I’ll be clear: were you printing the picture with a sinful intention?

In the future, to avoid issues, simply avoid occasions of sin. If your friend insists and says it’s funny, just move away (perhaps by loading a different picture) and calmly reply: “it is not funny.” Nobody can force you to do something you do not want to do.

I hope you get a nice stairwell! 🙂
 
Did you specifically search ‘stair building’ or **"stairbuilding’ **sites on the internet to find a suitable stair on a serious site?
eg like this one. If you don’t find any keyed to your national search, you could try other countries’ sites, eg English or European. Our searches are prone to be focused on our own country’s sites thanks to search engine preferences
ericjonesstairs.com.au/staircases.php
Sites like that show examples, no bikini ladies included.
No need to grapple with your conscience if you can find an alternative. 🙂
 
No, you didn’t sin. And I don’t think you’d have sinned if you had printed it, definitely not mortally so.

Now if you really want to use that picture, then print it, and color a nice modest outfit over the woman with colored pencils or markers. Yes, it’s silly, but so what? Maybe you can all laugh a little about it.
 
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