Habitual sin is NOT mortal!

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At 71, having been treated for prostate cancer with the subsequent in ability to have an erection and also dealing with retro-ejaculation I still get an occasional sexual urge over the 49 years of spousal relations. I cannot perform the sexual act. produce sperm, but still have temptations to relieve the normal sexual desires all men experience. I have had many priestly confessors advise me to “not worry about it” or “there is no sin” in my own situation. I do not worry about this being a mortal sin, but I do confess it. The reason to do so is that God is perfect and this demands I acknowledge this in my own life as a human weakness. I also believe as Jesus told St. Faustina that when one goes to confession he is there only hidden by the the priest. I am content that Jesus knows every rising and beating of my soul and that my heart is pure.Also, when we fret over our human condition to the point of condemning ourselves because we are not “perfect” we error in our relationship with God. What if we conquer all our human sins in this life, we truly become pathetic prideful morons thinking we have no need of Divine Mercy because we overcame…really. I worry more about how all our “favorite” sins could block our our fuller vision of the Christian life Jesus commanded us to live.Years ago I read the “prayer for myself” by a single mom who was contemplating suicide. This prayer is beautiful and is a great way to start the day before you work to save the world.

Jesus help me to realize my own goodness and value. Help me to realize I am a child and heir of God. Help me to accept your love, mercy. forgiveness and my salvation and my I treat others as I treat myself.AMEN
 
Robert_Scott_Co said:
Ok… That is not my thought. It was the thought of a priest that my friend went to confession with. He stated that because it was a habitual sin… the culpability was not present, so he said it was not mortal. This sin was masturbation? So… to a young male that would be easy for him to hear. Hey don’t worry is’t not mortal… you can’t control your self. Is there any truth to this?

Dang self theorists! I’m ok your ok! No it’s not ok!
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I agree that addiction is probably not mortal since the will is not fully involved. That said, however, I too had an addiction for years to masturbation. I learned how when I was 4 (no joke) and quickly fell into the habit. At 13 I found out it was a mortal sin. It took me 13 years of very difficult struggles after that to finally stop completely.

Looking back, I can say that since I developed the habit and addiction at such a young age with no understanding or knowledge that I most likely was not committing mortal sin. However, when I found out that masturbation was a mortal sin, believing my sin to be mortal is what prompted me to stop. Had I thought it was only venial, I know I wouldn’t have tried so hard to stop. However, that mentality (not trying to stop sinning) is a mortal sin because it does involve the will.

Now that I am free from that sin, if I were to engage in masturbation, it would be a mortal sin because of the freedom of my will. However, we must strive in order to reach this freedom. Not trying to become free from sin is a sin itself, and a grave one. Complacency is very dangerous for the soul.

So, in regards to your friend, he probably isn’t committing a mortal sin every time he falls. However, your friend does have the obligation to do everything he can to stop. If he is trying to stop and falls in weakness, he isn’t willfully rejecting Christ, and therefore, it isn’t mortal. However, if he gets complacent (as you suggest he might) then yes, it becomes a mortal sin.
 
Great reply.

QUOTE=Micksman;12210833]At 71, having been treated for prostate cancer with the subsequent in ability to have an erection and also dealing with retro-ejaculation I still get an occasional sexual urge over the 49 years of spousal relations. I cannot perform the sexual act. produce sperm, but still have temptations to relieve the normal sexual desires all men experience. I have had many priestly confessors advise me to “not worry about it” or “there is no sin” in my own situation. I do not worry about this being a mortal sin, but I do confess it. The reason to do so is that God is perfect and this demands I acknowledge this in my own life as a human weakness. I also believe as Jesus told St. Faustina that when one goes to confession he is there only hidden by the the priest. I am content that Jesus knows every rising and beating of my soul and that my heart is pure.Also, when we fret over our human condition to the point of condemning ourselves because we are not “perfect” we error in our relationship with God. What if we conquer all our human sins in this life, we truly become pathetic prideful morons thinking we have no need of Divine Mercy because we overcame…really. I worry more about how all our “favorite” sins could block our our fuller vision of the Christian life Jesus commanded us to live.Years ago I read the “prayer for myself” by a single mom who was contemplating suicide. This prayer is beautiful and is a great way to start the day before you work to save the world.

Jesus help me to realize my own goodness and value. Help me to realize I am a child and heir of God. Help me to accept your love, mercy. forgiveness and my salvation and my I treat others as I treat myself.AMEN
 
Objectively, masturbation has a grave impact on a person’s spiritual life (and other sphere’s of life) because of its ability to completely destroy a man or woman’s ability to give sacrificially to their spouse, or other vocation, or outside of the context of marriage, to have outlets that are not self-seeking or self-bonding. This means also a severing with God. The Church might be criticized for calling it grave because of how common the sin is, but the commonness of a lifestyle - while it might indeed affect culpability - doesn’t change the objective impact it has on a society and an individual. If we think of sin as being an analogy to a physical virus or germ, a virus that is widespread - like smallpox to the Native Americans - is objectively just as damaging to an individual then if it were very rare. It makes no difference in terms of the symptoms the virus produces.

So whether or not a sin is or isn’t mortal, it’s still nonetheless grave, which means treating it is a very needed act of mercy.
 
jmcrae said:
…At some point in the past, the action was deliberately repeated over and over again, until it became a habit.

This is where the mortal sin occurred - when it was done deliberately, and when it was repeated over and over again, in order to develop the habit…needs to break the habit. He still needs to find something healthier to do in his spare time.
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I completely disagree with the accusatory statement that all habitual sin started out as deliberate. Some habitual sins, yes, but not all.

My habitual sin is being chronically late, and this is lifelong. I cannot recall EVER when my lateness, and very poor time management was deliberate.

I wish I could stop, but repeatedly fail, confess, and am unable to follow advice given. Over, and over again, I am told I’m rude and disrespectful, including in the confessional.

Not managing my time is my sin and downfall.
 
I have a couple of Habitual sins and they are mortal. Just because someone feels like they aren’t doesn’t make it so.
 
Is it just me, or does it seem like people are always trying to avoid the sin of masturbation on a technicality so that they can keep on doing without worry of repercussions?
 
Lost_Sheep said:
Is it just me, or does it seem like people are always trying to avoid the sin of masturbation on a technicality so that they can keep on doing without worry of repercussions?
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It’s not just you. People will always try to rationalize so they can do what they want to do.

My theory is that masturbation is probably very often venial rather than mortal, but A) it’s probably best to err on the safe side and assume it’s mortal and confess it and B) if you assume it’s venial, you probably won’t try very hard to stop (which Micksman was alluding to.) Go ahead and assume it’s mortal and act accordingly in order to help yourself overcome. Even if the sin is habitual and mitigated, we’re still obligated to try to break the habit. We can’t just go, “Ah well, I have a habit, I’m off the hook!”
 
BoomBoomMancini said:
It’s not just you. People will always try to rationalize so they can do what they want to do.

My theory is that masturbation is probably very often venial rather than mortal, but A) it’s probably best to err on the safe side and assume it’s mortal and confess it and B) if you assume it’s venial, you probably won’t try very hard to stop (which Micksman was alluding to.) Go ahead and assume it’s mortal and act accordingly in order to help yourself overcome. Even if the sin is habitual and mitigated, we’re still obligated to try to break the habit. We can’t just go, “Ah well, I have a habit, I’m off the hook!”
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Yes.

I have been reading a book about eating disorders. I have one and it is easy to fall into this kind of thinking - “well, I’m sick, I can’t help it, might as well, probably not as serious.” This book talks about the neuroscience involved in habit changing, because at its root disordered eating is a habit that we’ve gotten into because our brains have primed us to continue doing it. The solution is simple on its face - to stop giving in to the urge - but it takes time for the urges to go away. What makes them go away? Ignoring them and going about your day.

It’s hard to do. For sure. I had been doing well for a long time, but the urges for my eating disorder still came occasionally and unfortunately I fell again. I’m now working on recovery again. But I think the technique would apply regardless of the habit. To tell yourself, “This is the survival instinct of my lower brain, that says I need this habit. But I know that I don’t need this habit. It is not good for me. So I will go about my day.” And then to do just that.
 
pensmama87 said:
Yes.

I have been reading a book about eating disorders. I have one and it is easy to fall into this kind of thinking - “well, I’m sick, I can’t help it, might as well, probably not as serious.” This book talks about the neuroscience involved in habit changing, because at its root disordered eating is a habit that we’ve gotten into because our brains have primed us to continue doing it. The solution is simple on its face - to stop giving in to the urge - but it takes time for the urges to go away. What makes them go away? Ignoring them and going about your day.

It’s hard to do. For sure. I had been doing well for a long time, but the urges for my eating disorder still came occasionally and unfortunately I fell again. I’m now working on recovery again. But I think the technique would apply regardless of the habit. To tell yourself, “This is the survival instinct of my lower brain, that says I need this habit. But I know that I don’t need this habit. It is not good for me. So I will go about my day.” And then to do just that.
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Perhaps, but I don’t believe that the Church explicitly says that overeating is a sin.
 
This thread is very very very old.

We are not to bring back old threads.
 
m134e5 said:
Sins that involve grave matter should always be confessed. The sin may or may not be mortal- only you and God know whether or not it was. If they are not mortal sins for you because of habit, that doesn’t mean that it is ok to do it. You have to try and break the habit- and confessing it each time can help you.
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The second sentence above was exactly the same point that radio priest Fr. John Riccardo made on EWTN radio today, in an extended presentation of the parable of the prodigal son.

I think the catechism is vague on the “other” psychological and social factors and on the “inordinate attachments” that may cause one to commit actions that are considered grave matter.

On his EWTN Live program, Fr. Mitch Pacwa discussed this question of habits and he said that the actions of developing a habit and the lack of attempt to break the habit may be grave matter as well.

I think we musts always roll into the conversation about this, the universal call to holiness, with which “grave matter” is incompatible. We all should be warned about this and not take habitual acts of grave matter lightly.

I think our Holy Father is trying to encourage people to contrition and repentance, in the context of God’s mercy and the sacrament of reconciliation.
 
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