Did I break my Lenten penance?

[jeanne71350]

If I gave up Facebook for Lent, and I read a Facebook alert that was sent to my email and never actually logged on the website, does that count as breaking my penance? Should I go to Confession?

Thanks

-Jeanne

 

[baltobetsy]

Lenten penances are entirely voluntary, and it is not mortally sinful to break them, so you do not need to confess if you don’t want to. I’m not into Facebook, so I don’t know the ins and outs of what you actually did.

 

[Big_Ro]

Baltobetsy has it right. But, if you feel bad about it it couldn’t hurt to confess. My 2 cents.

 

[achmafooma]

If I gave up Facebook for Lent, and I read a Facebook alert that was sent to my email and never actually logged on the website, does that count as breaking my penance? Should I go to Confession?

Thanks

-Jeanne

As baltobetsy pointed out, breaking your own voluntary Lenten penance is not a mortal sin, so it is not necessary to Confess it. Because giving up Facebook is a personal Lenten devotion, it’s up to you to decide how strictly or loosely you will abide by it.

There’s also a matter of intent…if you were going through your email and read the Facebook alert message without consciously intending to use Facebook, then (in my opinion) you have not even broken your penance at all anyway.

It’s like the person who eats a ham sandwich on Friday, and realizes (after eating it) that it’s Friday and he broke the Lenten abstinence. Well, he didn’t mean to. That’s not sinful. It only would have been sinful if he had known it was Friday, knew it was Lent, knew he shouldn’t eat the ham sandwich, and did it anyway.

If you wish to abide strictly by your chosen penance, you might consider logging into Facebook (just once!) to turn off all of the email notifications and then log right back out. Then this won’t happen again.

God bless you!

 

[paperwight66]

Baltobetsy has it right. But, if you feel bad about it it couldn’t hurt to confess. My 2 cents.

I’m sorry, but I think that’s bad advice. Nobody should be encouraged to be scrupulous - it’s a terrible thing.

 

[Big_Ro]

I’m sorry, but I think that’s bad advice. Nobody should be encouraged to be scrupulous - it’s a terrible thing.

Sorry. I’ve seen tthat term around here but not exactly sure what it means. Please enlighten me.

 

[jeanne71350]

Sorry. I’ve seen tthat term around here but not exactly sure what it means. Please enlighten me.

It is pretty much religious OCD. You think that things are mortal sins when they really aren’t, and your conscience can’t judge things correctly. A spiritual director is needed to overcome it.

-Jeanne

 

[jeanne71350]

As baltobetsy pointed out, breaking your own voluntary Lenten penance is not a mortal sin, so it is not necessary to Confess it. Because giving up Facebook is a personal Lenten devotion, it’s up to you to decide how strictly or loosely you will abide by it.

There’s also a matter of intent…if you were going through your email and read the Facebook alert message without consciously intending to use Facebook, then (in my opinion) you have not even broken your penance at all anyway.

It’s like the person who eats a ham sandwich on Friday, and realizes (after eating it) that it’s Friday and he broke the Lenten abstinence. Well, he didn’t mean to. That’s not sinful. It only would have been sinful if he had known it was Friday, knew it was Lent, knew he shouldn’t eat the ham sandwich, and did it anyway.

If you wish to abide strictly by your chosen penance, you might consider logging into Facebook (just once!) to turn off all of the email notifications and then log right back out. Then this won’t happen again.

God bless you!

The message was important too, I saw it and the girl needed to reach me about an absolute dedline tomorrow and I ended up calling her. She didn’t realize I had given it up for Lent until after. I think I’m ok. I only did it because the girl needed to reach me, and the intent really wasn’t there to get on and chat mindlessly which is why I gave it up, and she didn’t realize what was going on.

-Jeanne

 

[surfinpure]

I gave up fb for Lent, also, but today I broke my fast intentionally to announce the birth of my new godson! :extrahappy:Of course, I got right back off. If someone sends me a message, I’ll read it in my inbox and respond to them through email if necessary. Lots of people treat fb like email anyway, and they don’t all realize we’ve given it up, so it’s easy to miss a potentially important message. I decided in my own case to read the emails (which are few) and decide whether or not to follow up before Easter.

So no, I don’t think you broke your penitential fast, and even if you had, as others pointed out, it’s not binding under pain of sin. You’re fine.

 

[baltobetsy]

I’m sorry, but I think that’s bad advice. Nobody should be encouraged to be scrupulous - it’s a terrible thing.

Confessing something that does not strictly need to be confessed is not what constitutes scrupulosity. Most people can do this without any harm at all, and it helps them come closer to God when done for that reason. Some people have a tendency to scrupulosity and OCD and should never confess anything they are not certain is a mortal sin, or whatever criteria have been given to them by the one and only confessor they are obeying as part of the cure.

 

[slywakka250]

Don’t worry about this. Lent is a journey. If you break your penance, simply begin again. Focus on God, not distractions like this I say. Be at peace.

 

[Big_Ro]

Confessing something that does not strictly need to be confessed is not what constitutes scrupulosity. Most people can do this without any harm at all, and it helps them come closer to God when done for that reason. Some people have a tendency to scrupulosity and OCD and should never confess anything they are not certain is a mortal sin, or whatever criteria have been given to them by the one and only confessor they are obeying as part of the cure.

Well, I hope it’s clear that I had no intention of exacerbating a psychological problem. So, I apologize if I inadvertantly provided bad advice. I am bothered when I see threads on here where people are , IMHO, beating themselves up for being human. I see a forgiving God that wants to be reconciled. I’m not saying we shouldn’t worry about sin and it’s effect. I’m saying God loves us and he forgives. I will say a prayer for those suffering from this malady and ask that the burden be lifted from them.