Impaired free will when half asleep?

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I was oscillating between being 75% awake/25% asleep and 75% asleep/25% awake when I had fantasies of fornication. There was a point where I knew they were grave and still did them. But when I became 100% awake I stopped immediately. If there was such an immediate ability to truly and fully control myself in a sober state and stop it, when fully awake, wouldn’t then that mean that my free will was impaired in the part dream state?

I even heard a girl’s voice during the part dream part that was an “aid” to my fantasies.

Also, the thoughts stemmed from a sexual dream I had when 100% asleep, so the thoughts didn’t start when partly awake, but came from a dream.

I believe my knowledge of the gravity was there but full judgement and free will. The fact that I was partly dreaming makes it harder to say.

Either way, because I fear hell, I will confess this on Wednesday. I hope I don’t die before then. Can someone describe what a perfect act of contrition is? Doesn’t that save you from unconfessed sin?

Thank you
 
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dbranch said:
I was oscillating between being 75% awake/25% asleep and 75% asleep/25% awake when I had fantasies of fornication. There was a point where I knew they were grave and still did them. But when I became 100% awake I stopped immediately. If there was such an immediate ability to truly and fully control myself in a sober state and stop it, when fully awake, wouldn’t then that mean that my free will was impaired in the part dream state?

I even heard a girl’s voice during the part dream part that was an “aid” to my fantasies.

Also, the thoughts stemmed from a sexual dream I had when 100% asleep, so the thoughts didn’t start when partly awake, but came from a dream.

I believe my knowledge of the gravity was there but full judgement and free will. The fact that I was partly dreaming makes it harder to say.

Either way, because I fear hell, I will confess this on Wednesday. I hope I don’t die before then. Can someone describe what a perfect act of contrition is? Doesn’t that save you from unconfessed sin?

Thank you
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Catechism
1451 Among the penitent’s acts contrition occupies first place. Contrition is "sorrow of the soul and detestation for the sin committed, together with the resolution not to sin again."50

1452 When it arises from a love by which God is loved above all else, contrition is called “perfect” (contrition of charity). Such contrition remits venial sins; it also obtains forgiveness of mortal sins if it includes the firm resolution to have recourse to sacramental confession as soon as possible.51
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Act of Contrition, and note the “but most of all” portion:
O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because of Thy just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, Who art all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin.
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Baltimore Catechism
203 Q. What is perfect contrition?
A. Perfect contrition is that which fills us with sorrow and hatred for sin because it offends God, who is infinitely good in Himself and worthy of all love.
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Yes, your will and understanding were impaired. How impaired is hard to say, but I suspect it was enough to matter. You aren’t in control of how fast or in what order you wake up. Not every part of the brain wakes up at the same time. Awareness of grave matter in no way implies the ability to do anything with that awareness.

You did not choose to enter an aroused state. That was inflicted upon you. And you fought back. I have no idea how you dream but I suspect that the realization of grave matter was you fighting back against arousal and fantasy. The start of you taking back control.

You are worried that you had control and intent before you were fully awake. Consider the possibility that you were fighting against sin before you were fully awake too.
 
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dbranch said:
I was oscillating between being 75% awake/25% asleep and 75% asleep/25% awake when I had fantasies of fornication. There was a point where I knew they were grave and still did them. But when I became 100% awake I stopped immediately. If there was such an immediate ability to truly and fully control myself in a sober state and stop it, when fully awake, wouldn’t then that mean that my free will was impaired in the part dream state?
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I would say, based on my own experiences, you were not fully conscious. Things like this have happened where I am in a twilight stage, or falling in and out of sleep, dozing etc. As you said, there is dream “hangover”. Like you said, when you were fully awake and aware, you stopped. That shows that there was a lack of control by the rational function of your brain. I have confessed these type of things before, but make sure to describe it as it actually happened, because this is different from engaging in lustful fantasy while fully awake. (I am willing to bet an experienced Confessor would probably be inclined to decide this was not sin at all). In my opinion, much of this was probably a dream and you were in and out sleep, and you lacked full control and had some partial awareness, but it is hazy and doubtful. The devil likes to toy with us when our defenses are down.

My advice, confess it as it is, so you don’t worry about it, but do not assume it was a mortal sin. I highly doubt it was, a mortal sin—(it might not even be venial sin, because you lacked the capacity to really make informed decisions and sin is always a choice made by the will) although I am not a confessor. Based on my own experience, at best your awareness was partial, and you were not awake enough (and perhaps still dreaming) to make rational decisions. As you did point out, upon being fully awake, you ceased to lust. That shows that your rational mind, when fully aware, was not inclined to
 
Thanks for the clear and logical answer.

The “lust meter” on the fantasied while partly asleep were waaaaay higher than my normal intrusive sexual thoughts, that part was what frightened me, but I think in the end, partly asleep = not fully consenting and that’s that. I will still confess but I can go through my day a little easier knowing it wasn’t deadly.
 
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Since you say you knew the gravity of your sin when in the state, I’d say its mortal. I’d get to confession ASAP.
 
Well, we were discussing the consent aspect…

As you may know for a sin to be mortal it must meet all three, not just one or two of these:
  1. grave matter
  2. knowledge of grave matter
  3. freely chosen
Because I was half asleep the last aspect is not met… at least that is what I am concluding… have a blessed day.
 
knowing the gravity of a sin does not make a sin mortal . It requires all 3 conditions. With all due respect , you don’t know the OP’s struggles to comment that you think hes in mortal sin.

Thats between him , his confessor and God .
 
If I were in your position, I’d first try to figure out why you’re not able to stay 100% asleep.
 
The OP asked the question. If it is between his confessor and God and him then fine. But he posted a public question of which i gave an opinion. It is what the OP asked for. Personally I think one should form ones own conscience and do exactly as you say. But that didn’t happen here. I don’t buy that the “half asleep” thing is real or quantifiable. The OP threw out arbitrary percentages which is impossible if one was unconscious. Was the OP tired? No doubt, was the OP in a dream like fantasy? ok. But the OP said they knew the action and if it was right or wrong at the time, so there’s that.

Normally I always say “go to confession, we can’t be your conscience” But yet people keep asking and asking. So in my opinion, if I were the OP I would consider myself in mortal sin and go to confession. That opinion can very well be wrong. But I’d rather error on the side of caution and the poor soul goes to confession ASAP than error on the other side and tell him it is not mortally sinful, thereby taking responsibility for the OP’s potential sin myself. I’d rather go to God saying “oops perhaps I was wrong with that one and it wasn’t mortally sinful.” than go to God saying "I bet my own sinfulness that is wasn’t sinful so I told your child it was ok for you.

The OP later states they knew the three elements of sin. So this is purely a needless thread anyway.

Still on the record though. Mortal sin. Only because we were asked to give the opinion.
 
TTCUSM said:
If I were in your position, I’d first try to figure out why you’re not able to stay 100% asleep.
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I have twilight sleep and hazy periods at times when they are gradually awakening. I know exactly what OP was talking about—where you aren’t fully conscious and you have remnants of dreams in which there is content you wouldn’t purposely think about when fully awake and aware.
 
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IdaCatholic said:
I don’t buy that the “half asleep” thing is real or quantifiable.
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It really can happen like that. You are in a twilight stage and all kinds of weird stuff comes into your brain, and then when you wake up you are not sure if you were dreaming or what. It has happened to me enough to know exactly what he is talking about. **If you are scrupulous, like me, these hazy, dozing, twilight dreams can really mess with your head, because upon waking you aren’t sure if you knew what you were doing. Then you later realize it was a dream and it stopped when you were awake, but feel compelled to confess it anyway because it has already made " the list". So you confess it as a doubtful sin even though you know full well that it was a dream.
 
Assessing mortal sin

Some examples of when we do not give deliberate consent include:
" 2) When we do it when we are asleep.
  1. When we do it when we are really groggy (e.g., just going to sleep or just waking from sleep)"
Lesson 6 Baltimore Catechsim
" Q. 284. What does “sufficient reflection and full consent of the will” mean?

A. “Sufficient reflection” means that we must know the thought, word or deed to be sinful at the time we are guilty of it; and “full consent of the will” means that we must fully and wilfully yield to it. (Bold emphasis on this word is mine).
 
** Still on the record though. Mortal sin. Only because we were asked to give the opinion.**

I dont believe he asked if hes in mortal sin or not, he asked about the impairment of his free will and about perfect contrition.

And what im saying is the OP’s intent is to bring this to confession anyway as he stated in his post , so i dont understand how you would think you would be responsible for the ops potential sin if you don’t comment that hes in mortal sin?

Its a good rule of thumb i agree to go to confession if the first two conditions are met , but that doesn’t mean its a mortal sin. I just don’t think its helpful in your opinion to say that he is , even as an encouragement to get the person to go to confession because it could potentially lead to scrupulosity. A regular confessor and the penitent can discuss this at the confessional and discern the full culpability of the sin committed, whilst receiving absolution .
 
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He believed there was grave matter. He said he had knowledge of the gravity. His question was on the freeness of his Will. I hold that it was free as he was not dreaming and “knew” and was aware of things. Again. My opinion. And if one cannot hold that opinion then the OP never ever should have posted the question.
 
If one is scrupulous then one should not poll internet strangers about sins. Full stop.
 
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