Is a Pornography Addiction always a Mortal Sin?

[needshelp]

I have been stuggling with a particular part of the Catechism:

The promptings of feelings and passions can also diminish the voluntary and free character of the offense, as can external pressures or pathological disorders. CCC1859

For me Pornography has become a huge problem, I constantly find myself coming back to internet pornography almost daily. Sometimes I have no control over it, and after I see it I am immediately disgusted with myself, almost confused with how difficult this is for me. I have not once fallen to masturbation, the desire comes and goes maybe once every two months with nothing really happening. (which really threw my previous regular confessor through a loop over why I watch pornography.) He was never able to give me a strait answer, if the addiction lessens the gravity. Is it better for me to seek a confession daily every time and hope I can hold out long enough to receive morning communion the next day, or to receive communion as often as possible to help me fight the addiction. Morning Mass is in 7 Hours, and after a week porn free I had planned to start going to daily mass, say Morning Prayer before Mass with a Rosary + Scripture afterward. But I fell friday, went to confession Saturday, fell again maybe three hours afterward. I received communion Sunday, but I wasn’t sure if I had mortal sin or not.
A lot of times I fall to it I see nothing, I go to this one particular website, (Which I have blocked, but I know too much about PC’s and know how to get around it, though the protection does slow it down) and see if anything was added, most of the times I am able to click away without seeing anything, but a sense of failure remains.
Please, I need advice and prayers!

 

[omegabane]

needshelp -

What a cross this must be! First, please know that you are not alone in this type of addiction. It is one that many Catholic men (and some women) experience. Recent studies suggest that as many as 40% of Catholic men view internet pornography.

There are many options for you to get help. There is a great list of resources for people battling impurity posted here on the forums:

forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=55427

Also, you might consider a Sexaholics Anonymous (SA) group if one is available in your area. You can find more information about SA online, including whether there may be a group in your area. I know several people who have been a part of SA and they have told me how utterly helpful it has been for them.

A priest that I know often counsels people to find what he calls a “holy distraction.” When you feel the urge to view pornography, find something else to occupy that time. Leave the house and go for a walk, pick up the Bible, kneel down and pray - anything at all to help you avoid the temptation. I’m sure this isn’t easy to do and you shouldn’t expect to overcome this addiction immediately, but you can find purity. Ask the Holy Spirit to give your purity. He will hear you and start working to transform your heart if you are sincere.

As for whether it is always a mortal sin - that isn’t a question that anyone by God can truly answer. While pornography is always grave matter, whether it is mortal sin depends on several factors:

1. The matter is grave.
2. You have full knowledge of the act.
3. You commit the act with full consent of the will.

The first is clearly true, and it seems the second is for you as well, but that third may or may not be true in the case of an addiction. Addiction is a real thing and can often mitigate the sinfulness, but it is still no excuse.

One thing you might want to try in addition to prayer is fasting. Fasting has long been a tool in the Catholic Church. It helps us to cultivate self-discipline and to put aside our own desires for Christ. Start with something small, like coffee or that Snickers bar, and then work up. As you cultivate this self-discipline, you will build strength to combat the addiction.

We can’t overcome addictions on our own, so whatever you do, seek help, whether that be SA or something else! I’ll be praying for you.

 

[EmeraldWings]

you’ve already gotten an excellent reply, but i thought i’d add some more,
i have actually helped many people with these kinds of problems, well, it seems to be the most common problem people have, whether they see it as a problem or not,

well first of all, like the person before me explained, you must reach a certain point before you’ve officially committed a mortal sin, and although you may be angry or frustrated with yourself for only being tempted, you should remember that temptations are good for you and make you stronger when you overcome them.

also when you give into temptation, don’t beat yourself up over it, because you don’t want to end up being despaired, just keep on going, you will have your good days and your bad days, but the more you keep on fighting it, the more you’ll see improvement,

but as for your question, if it’s always a mortal sin, the answer is yes, unless you didn’t give in knowingly, then yes,
and to clear up any other confusion you may have, every sin of impurity is a mortal sin, there is absolutely no such thing as a venial sin of impurity, but don’t let that depress you, because even if an impure thought enters your head or something else, it is just not a mortal sin unless you have full consent to it.

i think going to confession daily would help you alot, well it would help anyone really, but it’s obviously not common nowadays is it.
since this is a daily battle for you, daily confession would be a great weapon, that and alot of prayer,
confession isn’t just there for forgiveness, it’s there to give you the graces you need to overcome your sins,

and anytime you feel tempted, just pray and ask help from the saints and the Blessed Mother, and then just hurry and get your mind off of what’s causing your temptation,

if your computer is making it to hard for you to avoid committing mortal sins, then take extreme action, there is nothing in this world worth the loss of your immortal soul,

Jesus tells us, if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off!
so don’t think it’s so unthinkable to go as far as getting rid of your computer or taking whatever extreme measures you need to,

unless you live alone, another good thing to do would be to put your computer somewhere that’s not so private,

ok and just remember, God does not ask us to be perfect, He only asks us to try, so as long as you never give up, then you are pleasing God in that way.

 

[Predikant]

For me Pornography has become a huge problem, I constantly find myself coming back to internet pornography almost daily.

Lust was invented by the devil and will lead to Hell unless repentance and change is followed. You better not fool your self in justfifying what you are doing, so I will tell you the truth. IT WILL LEAD YOU TO HELL, WAKE UP AND STOP FOOL YOUR SELF! THIS IS SERIOUS, ITS ABOUT AN ETERNITY, AND FOR YOU IT IS HEADING TOWARDS HELL!

Why care of this world and its pleasures? Seek God alone, here, I will give you help, if you follow it you will be Saved, if you deny it, the path of Hell has opened for you!

Christ Says: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the
Kingdom of Heaven [Matthew 5:3]

Those that more strive to fill themselves of this world and of what the flesh desire, will not God be able to fill with him. Therefore, as he said, only those whom are poor in Spirit, poor of this world, will see God.

If what you desire is temporal enjoyments rather than eternal, if you strive to achieve something empty that you will leave behind when you die, and, if you spend your time playing video games and watching worldly movies and series, then you fill yourself with the world, and cannot be filled by God. This goes for all vain pleasures, such as sex, masturbation, gluttony, wrath, greed, unfruitful talk about the world, etc. None of these will see God, for what they desired was of this world, and the world passeth away.

If you dress in such a way to tempt others into Lust and vanity you are breaking Gods law and if you show of breast and butt by wearing tight clothes then you are deceived and deceive others to Hell by lust and vanity and will yourself also go to Hell. But everyone you have deceived by your shallow and lustful appearance will you also get a punishment for.

Shallowness is a deceit from satan, and make up is also. Do not wear make up so that it shows around eyes and face. The mirror is evil and give birth to shallowness and vanity, try to awoid it and escape its poison. Do not care of jewelry or nice clothing. Temporal goods should be as nothing to us who walk with christ.

You can read about clothing, shallowness and make-up and what God really thinks about it in Book 7 - Chapter 27, www.saintbirgitta.com

You can read about chastity and why it must be kept to enter Heaven here:

www.saintbirgitta.com - book 1, chapter 13
www.saintbirgitta.com - book 1, chapter 26
www.saintbirgitta.com - book 1, chapter 9
www.saintbirgitta.com - book 1, chapter 16

You can read on how the world and its pleasures must be dead for any one to enter Heaven, how God must be the only one we strive and reach for, both for our salvation and for others, by giving them a good example and teaching.

www.saintbirgitta.com - book 1, chapter 14
www.saintbirgitta.com - book 5, eight revelation
www.saintbirgitta.com - book 1, chapter 1
www.saintbirgitta.com - book 1, chapter 39
www.saintbirgitta.com - book 2, chapter 22

If you do refuse to read what will help you and strengthen you, you will be judged more severe, since you had in front of you what would help and strengthen you, but refused. Do not let the demons fool you any more, force yourself to read, and never stop to read, because if you do stop to Read God’s words here the Devil will make you forget, so you will take sin lightly and fall back into despair.

Start to read from book 1, chapter 1 - www.saintbirgitta.com

And when you have read through all chapters once, read them again, and again… Never stop, trust me, never stop, this is about your soul and an eternity, this is no joke…

 

[Maxply]

This might sound dumb, but just tell yourself routinely, during the course of the day, the week, that you’re not so interested in sex, that you just have a lot of work to do to get through the day. If you say this regularly, and keep an eye on all the tasks you have to get done, that may help quite a bit.

 

[ComputerGeek25]

You’ve already gotten some good replies.

Addiction to anything (drugs, sex, chocolate, etc.) can reduce your culpability for that sin, to a venial level, or none at all. The addiction can wear down your free will.

A couple of things that work:

Prayer. Any type of prayer or devotion. It could be anything from frequent reciting of “Jesus help me” in time of temptation to praying the rosary on a daily basis. Or fasting even.

Frequently go to confession, on a weekly basis. Even if you haven’t looked at porn that week, go anyways, and confess venial sins and faults. Talk with your confessor about your culpability.

Frequently attend mass and recieve the Eucharist.

Again, never underestimate the power of the Sacraments of Confession and the Eucharist. Take your problems to the man upstairs, and he will never let you down.

 

[Starwynd]

So with all these things that are being done in order to enter heaven are necessary to enter heaven, will they be relaxed in heaven?

 

[Augustine]

In the same line, one can look at the picture of a dressed woman and sin mortally, others can look at a woman in bikini and not sin mortally. What makes one mortal and the other not?

 

[ComputerGeek25]

In the same line, one can look at the picture of a dressed woman and sin mortally, others can look at a woman in bikini and not sin mortally. What makes one mortal and the other not?

It depends on your self control. In either case, one can allow themselves to get caught up in lustful thoughts - like daydreaming about said woman in a sexual fashion.

 

[omegabane]

In the same line, one can look at the picture of a dressed woman and sin mortally, others can look at a woman in bikini and not sin mortally. What makes one mortal and the other not?

It really comes down to an issue of intention and, as another poster has already written, self-control. (As an aside: I think there is a question of whether we should be looking at women in bikinis anyway as a matter of decency. Modern cultures have really blurred the lines between what is “decent” and what is not, but this is really an issue for another thread, so I’ll just stop here.)

As Jesus said in Matthew 5:28, “But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” This is why it is possible to look at a women who is dressed with perfect decency and still commit mortal sin. At the same time, if I am able to somehow suppress the natural instincts that are aroused by seeing a woman in what virtually amounts to her underwear (and sometimes more revealing even than those), I would be able to see the woman in the bikini without lust.

That said, I wouldn’t test whether or not you can do this by heading out to the beaches to see whether or not you’re tempted by what you see. The act of knowingly putting yourself in a situation where you can be confident that temptation to mortal sin is lurking could, in and of itself, be sinful.

 

[PeteZaHut]

www.settingcaptivesfree.com

The Sexual Impurity Course there has helped me greatly with pornography addiction.

 

[teachccd]

Lust was invented by the devil and will lead to Hell unless repentance and change is followed. You better not fool your self in justfifying what you are doing, so I will tell you the truth. IT WILL LEAD YOU TO HELL, WAKE UP AND STOP FOOL YOUR SELF! THIS IS SERIOUS, ITS ABOUT AN ETERNITY, AND FOR YOU IT IS HEADING TOWARDS HELL

This person needs compassionate help. You know, the kind that Christ would offer. So please don’t yell at him as he already knows the seriousness of his actions or he wouldn’t be here. I understand your fervency but show a little more charity. You know, like Christ does when you sin…teachccd

 

[Simon_X]

This person needs compassionate help. You know, the kind that Christ would offer. So please don’t yell at him as he already knows the seriousness of his actions or he wouldn’t be here. I understand your fervency but show a little more charity. You know, like Christ does when you sin…teachccd/QUOTE

Amen,

Posters come here for advice and prayers. I think they don’t need to be told the obvious…

 

[Wyatt]

I’m really confused on this issue. It seems like there are differing opinions on the issue. Some have said that the addictive nature overrides your free will, making it not full consent and thus not a mortal sin. Others are saying that it is a mortal sin no matter what. Which is it? I’ve even heard differing opinions from priests.

 

[Simon_X]

I’m really confused on this issue. It seems like there are differing opinions on the issue. Some have said that the addictive nature overrides your free will, making it not full consent and thus not a mortal sin. Others are saying that it is a mortal sin no matter what. Which is it? I’ve even heard differing opinions from priests.

Wyatt, it sounds confusing because it really is. Most Catholics who recognize the seriousness of this sin, will of course, recommend confession and absolution, and to get outside help for this condition. It probably is wise to talk to a priest about an individual’s problem, but confession is always needed to wipe out mortal sin.

 

[csr]

At times I have suffered from this problem as well. The possibility that at times a person acts under a kind of chemical compulsion is, to my mind, plausible, as there are neurological elements in this habit. What I want to say is, I’m not sure that confession is always truly effective. Sometimes it doesn’t really seem to help to go through the same old process again. The priest gets sick of it, the penitent gets sick of it. Yes, the penitent wants to stop. But he probably has some difficulties in his life for which the neurological high is too compelling. I don’t say it’s not a mortal sin. I’m just wondering if the best recovery method has been discovered. Probably not. Our souls can be made white as snow, though, so I have faith, and I believe. In the past, to get a break I have sometimes gone to a different priest, just to hear another voice, a different line of advice (they’re all a little different). (I always mention the totality of the problem though. I don’t represent to a strange priest that this is somehow a new problem.)

Actually the real answer is prayer. You just have to pray for a good while each day, quiet prayer, after your vocals are offered. Without that, there is no hope of progress, it seems to me.

 

[Simon_X]

At times I have suffered from this problem as well. The possibility that at times a person acts under a kind of chemical compulsion is, to my mind, plausible, as there are neurological elements in this habit. What I want to say is, I’m not sure that confession is always truly effective. Sometimes it doesn’t really seem to help to go through the same old process again. The priest gets sick of it, the penitent gets sick of it. Yes, the penitent wants to stop. But he probably has some difficulties in his life for which the neurological high is too compelling. I don’t say it’s not a mortal sin. I’m just wondering if the best recovery method has been discovered. Probably not. Our souls can be made white as snow, though, so I have faith, and I believe. In the past, to get a break I have sometimes gone to a different priest, just to hear another voice, a different line of advice (they’re all a little different). (I always mention the totality of the problem though. I don’t represent to a strange priest that this is somehow a new problem.)

Actually the real answer is prayer. You just have to pray for a good while each day, quiet prayer, after your vocals are offered. Without that, there is no hope of progress, it seems to me.

I agree pretty much of what you’re saying CSR. But, I have to say, I believe that most priests don’t get tired of hearing our same sins since they can be serious and mortal. I agree with prayer, but Confession certainly gives us the chance to start over so to speak, and that’s always encouraging in this struggle…

 

[Augustine]

I’m really confused on this issue. It seems like there are differing opinions on the issue. Some have said that the addictive nature overrides your free will, making it not full consent and thus not a mortal sin. Others are saying that it is a mortal sin no matter what. Which is it? I’ve even heard differing opinions from priests.

I was confused by this question too, but I read somewhere an article by a priest and he stated that only God can tell how much one’s will was affected by the addiction, therefore making confession the default method to solve any doubt.

 

[UndertheRadar]

From Pope Pius XII, March 25, 1954:

Flight and alert vigilance, by which we carefully avoid the occasions of sin, have always been considered by holy men and women as the most effective method of combat in this matter; today however it does not seem that everybody holds the same opinion. Some indeed claim that all Christians, and the clergy in particular, should “take the risk” and put their chastity to the test in order to show whether or not they have the strength to resist; therefore, they say, let young clerics see everything so that they may accustom themselves to gaze at everything with equanimity, and thus render themselves immune to all temptations. For this reason they readily grant young clerics the liberty to turn their eyes in any direction without the slightest concern for modesty; they may attend motion pictures, ever those forbidden by ecclesiastical censorship; they may peruse even obscene periodicals; they may read novels which are listed in the Index of forbidden books or prohibited by the Natural Law. All this they allow because today the multitudes are fed by this kind of amusement and publication and because those who are minded to help them should understand their way of thinking and feeling. But it is easily seen that this method of educating and training the clergy to acquire the sanctity proper to their calling is wrong and harmful. For “he that loveth danger shall perish in it”; most appropriate in this connection is the admonition of Augustine: “Do not say that you have a chaste mind if your eyes are unchaste, because an unchaste eye betrays an unchaste heart.”

The eminent way to protect and nourish an unsullied and perfect chastity, as proven by experience time and again throughout the course of centuries, is solid and fervent devotion to the Virgin Mother of God. In a certain way all other helps are contained in this devotion; there is no
doubt that whoever is sincerely and earnestly animated by this devotion is salutarily inspired to constant vigilance, to continual prayer, to receive the Sacraments of Penance and the Holy Eucharist.

In order to acquire this perfect mastery of the spirit over the senses, it is not enough to refrain from acts directly contrary to chastity, but it is necessary also generously to renounce anything that may offend this virtue nearly or remotely; at such a price will the soul be able to reign fully over the body and lead its spiritual life in peace and liberty. Who then does not see, in the light of Catholic principles, that perfect chastity and virginity, far from harming the normal unfolding of man or woman, on the contrary endow them with the highest moral nobility.

 

[HappyPerson]

Drawing closer to God through prayer, reading the Bible, attending Mass, receiving the Sacraments, learning more about your faith, acting upon what you have learned, and serving others will be very beneficial.

“My point is that you should live in accord with the spirit and you will not yield to the cravings of the flesh.” (Galatians 5:16)

Increasing your devotion to God, responding in obedience to His grace is by far the most effective way to overcome any sin.

In addition to that, an effective way to reduce lustful thoughts is to frequently and personally interact with SINGLE, not-related-to-you women who you can appreciate for their INNER beauty, even though they may be physically attractive, too. When you can see women as people, as precious in God’s Eyes, as human just like you, the notion of viewing online strangers as objects should not even appeal to you, because your thoughts involving women will be on such a higher level.

There are women out there with inner beauty, and when you get to know them, and want to protect them as if they were your sisters, you won’t want to participate in anything that compromises the respect and dignity that they deserve. Get to know them. By God’s grace, help them in their spiritual walk. It will work wonders for yours. Show them that not all men are jerks. Genuinely look out for their best interests, as best as you can discern them. Pray with them and for them. It is not enough to merely give up your sin; but you also need to replace it with righteousness, cultivating the proper attitude towards your own role as a friend and protector, and when you meet the right woman (based on a soul connection involving the person on the inside, NOT merely the outside) then consider starting a courtship with her. Acquiring a strong female friend base, and especially meeting that right person will help you continue to defeat that sin, preventing you from falling back into it.

While I highly recommend the Sacrament of Reconciliation, be careful that you don’t commit the sin of presumption, the idea of, “I’ll do this now, and confess it later.” Part of confessing is having the genuine desire to stop the sin, and the faith and trust in God that by His grace, you CAN be delivered from the addiction, and not merely “forgiven.”

Your actions should be motivated by genuine love for God and others. Rather than wondering whether it is a mortal sin, ask yourself the question, “Does this action show love to God and my neighbor?”

Also, as another poster mentioned, fasting helps you gain control over your flesh. If you can get into the habit of saying “no” to your flesh even on things that are not specifically sinful in and of themselves, you can gain tremendous ground in overcoming self-destructive sinful addictions.

Well, that’s my advice. We are in fact called to seek perfection, (see Matthew 5:48) but this is through God’s grace, not on our own power, and we can, during this lifetime, continue to get closer to perfection than we are, by God’s grace, and our positive responses to His grace, responses which themselves are moved by grace.