Is buying bootleg copy a sin? If it is, is it venial or mortal?

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Is buying bootlegs copies of blockbuster movie a sin? If it is a sin, is it mortal or venial? For Soldiers deployed overseas, we have no choice but to buy them because Big Movie theatre with current movies are not made available.

However, I cannot see tell whether this is morally right or wrong? So what is it?
 
Is buying bootlegs copies of blockbuster movie a sin? If it is a sin, is it mortal or venial? For Soldiers deployed overseas, we have no choice but to buy them because Big Movie theatre with current movies are not made available.

However, I cannot see tell whether this is morally right or wrong? So what is it?
It’s theft and breaches one of the commandments of the decalogue therefore mortal.

The excuse is really that they are not available NOW, even though they would be eventually. Everyone needs to make the same sacrifice in that we need to wait until they are legally available. You can buy them when the owner says they are for sale.

AndyF
 
It’s theft and breaches one of the commandments of the decalogue therefore mortal.

The excuse is really that they are not available NOW, even though they would be eventually. Everyone needs to make the same sacrifice in that we need to wait until they are legally available. You can buy them when the owner says they are for sale.

AndyF
Does it fit the three conditions to make it mortal?
  1. Full Consent of the Will.
  2. Grave Matter.
  3. Full Acknowledgement.
 
It’s theft and breaches one of the commandments of the decalogue therefore mortal.

The excuse is really that they are not available NOW, even though they would be eventually. Everyone needs to make the same sacrifice in that we need to wait until they are legally available. You can buy them when the owner says they are for sale.

AndyF
Does it fit the three conditions to make it mortal?
  1. Full Consent of the Will.
  2. Grave Matter.
  3. Full Acknowledgement.
It has to meet all three to make it mortal.
 
Is buying bootlegs copies of blockbuster movie a sin? If it is a sin, is it mortal or venial? For Soldiers deployed overseas, we have no choice but to buy them because Big Movie theatre with current movies are not made available.

However, I cannot see tell whether this is morally right or wrong? So what is it?
Get someone else, preferrably a non-Catholic to buy it for you, and no sin is involved.

Or split the cost with 4 other people and there is only 1/4 sin per person. Then every 4th bootleg, go to confession.
 
Get someone else, preferrably a non-Catholic to buy it for you, and no sin is involved.

Or split the cost with 4 other people and there is only 1/4 sin per person. Then every 4th bootleg, go to confession.
I don’t think it is a full in the catagory of grave matter. Anyways, I may ask a priest to verify the gravity of this is sin. I just doubt it is a mortal sin. I think it is** venial**.

I do think the **one who made the copy or produce the bootleg **has the **greater sin **than the one who actually bought it. Since it is the one who who made the **bootleg copy committed **the act of thief by video taping from the threatre then make copies, and distribute the copies in the black market.
 
Does it fit the three conditions to make it mortal?
  1. Full Consent of the Will.
  2. Grave Matter.
  3. Full Acknowledgement.
I had these in mind when I wrote the post and a good write up can be found on newadvent.com/sin.

If at the age of 15 someone had learned the 10 commandments, then criteria 3 would be met from that point on. Forgetting the rule would be a sin as well, as it is an obligation to remember them. There is no difficulty in remembering if one actually lives the Word faithfully.

But we can carry it further. If the decalogue is made available (this point on) and every person follows the law that they are to embark in understanding the Word, therefore dropping every other belief or non-belief, then they are still culpable in not making that effort and also of commiting the sin.

An indicator of the gravity comes from the special mention in the tablets.

Full consent is made.

The rule of innocence through ignorance strictly applied would find all those who had one time briefly read them culpable and those who were in ignorance innocent.

*ignorantia legis neminem excusat

*AndyF
 
Get someone else, preferrably a non-Catholic to buy it for you, and no sin is involved.

Or split the cost with 4 other people and there is only 1/4 sin per person. Then every 4th bootleg, go to confession.
well, I would suspect that buying the bootleg movie would essentially be petty theft. I’m ot sure whether that would be a mortal sin or not. But I am pretty certain the sin of scandal (causing someone else to sin) is, so this would be a worse choice.
 
well, I would suspect that buying the bootleg movie would essentially be petty theft. I’m ot sure whether that would be a mortal sin or not. But I am pretty certain the sin of scandal (causing someone else to sin) is, so this would be a worse choice.
I really just meant it as a joke. Should I keep my day job??
 
Is buying bootlegs copies of blockbuster movie a sin? If it is a sin, is it mortal or venial? For Soldiers deployed overseas, we have no choice but to buy them because Big Movie theatre with current movies are not made available.

However, I cannot see tell whether this is morally right or wrong? So what is it?
Despite what others wrote above, I don’t think it can be considered catagorically mortal. Mortal sin as has been stated requires:
grave matter
full knowledge
full consent

We simple can’t know that these conditions are met. Grave matter? I think that’s a fairly easy yes. It’s stolen goods. Whether the person is the one to actually copy it or the one who buys it doesn’t really matter, it’s still stealing.
Full knowledge and concent? Ask God cause only He knows. If you’re on here asking you likely have the knowledge and if there aren’t pressures we don’t know of you likely have consent…we that’s just it we don’t really know either for sure.

But really, be it mortal or venial, it is injurous to God and who could possibly consider it acceptable to injure God for the sake of seeing so of Hollywood’s most recent creations?
And on the same note, it’s not a very good idea to sit sorting moral sins from venial sins then indulge in the venial ones. Wasting time in such an activity is sinful in itself, and let’s not bother trying to sort out how grave the sin it.
 
Get someone else, preferrably a non-Catholic to buy it for you, and no sin is involved…
It seems to me that this would involve two sins, since when you ask someone else to commit a sin, that in itself is wrong. It doesn’t matter at all whether the person is Catholic or not. When you influence someone else to do wrong this in itself is very wrong, and in addition is scandalous also. So you are heaping evil on top of evil if you do something like this.
With that said, my personal opinion is that it is more serious to sell bootleg copies of things, rather than to buy them. At a local swapmeet, there was a booth where they were selling a recent James Bond movie. I don;t know if people who were buying there knew whether or not the DVD was official or a bootlegged copy. It would be wrong to buy a bootlegged copy of this movie in the USA since it was readily available. If the movie is not available officially somewhere, then it would not be as serious to buy a copy, in my personal opinion.
This issue came up for me a short time ago. There was a book which I needed, but I found that it was out of print, and the only available copy was in a distant library as it was not available in any bookstore or even over the internet sellers. I got the book from the interlibrary loan and was allowed to read the book for three weeks time. But I needed the book for a longer period of thime. I then called the publisher and asked if I could make a copy of the out of print book and if I would have to pay a copyright fee. The publisher then told me that I could make up to two copies for my own personal use free of charge, but after that I would have to pay for each copy at $7 license fee for each copy. He then sent this in a written letter so I could keep the letter with my Xerox copy of the book in case there were any questions about it. I then made one Xerox copy of the book and returned the book to the library.
I would guess that someone could do the same and request permission from the movie company to buy a copy of the movie at an out of the way military location, since there is no official version available. I don’t see why they would not let you do that for your own personal use in an out of the way place where an official version is not available?
 
I really just meant it as a joke. Should I keep my day job??
LOL! Well, you never know-- since I don’t know you personally, I was afraid to assume anything. I have run into plenty of people who really do think this way.
 
This issue came up for me a short time ago. There was a book which I needed, but I found that it was out of print, and the only available copy was in a distant library as it was not available in any bookstore or even over the internet sellers. I got the book from the interlibrary loan and was allowed to read the book for three weeks time. But I needed the book for a longer period of thime. I then called the publisher and asked if I could make a copy of the out of print book and if I would have to pay a copyright fee. The publisher then told me that I could make up to two copies for my own personal use free of charge, but after that I would have to pay for each copy at $7 license fee for each copy. He then sent this in a written letter so I could keep the letter with my Xerox copy of the book in case there were any questions about it. I then made one Xerox copy of the book and returned the book to the library.
I would guess that someone could do the same and request permission from the movie company to buy a copy of the movie at an out of the way military location, since there is no official version available. I don’t see why they would not let you do that for your own personal use in an out of the way place where an official version is not available?
I think asking to publishers is a great idea, but would caution that presuming their concent is far less good. There was a wonderful book that a Catholic Organization I worked for wanted to discuss at our corporate retreat. Our leader just wanted to discuss one chapter of the book and thus wrote the publisher to explain what he was wanted to teach and asked premission to copy a single chapter for 30 people. The publisher responded that they would not give premission but that since the topic he wanted to discuss was most fully covered on 3 or 4 pages, they would let him copy those 4 for 30 people on this one occasion.
So, he read us the opening of the chapter, handed out the middle, then later shared it’s conclusion in group.

I’m surprised how they handled it, but it’s their property and they can do as they wish.
 
I think asking to publishers is a great idea, but would caution that presuming their concent is far less good. There was a wonderful book that a Catholic Organization I worked for wanted to discuss at our corporate retreat. Our leader just wanted to discuss one chapter of the book and thus wrote the publisher to explain what he was wanted to teach and asked premission to copy a single chapter for 30 people. The publisher responded that they would not give premission but that since the topic he wanted to discuss was most fully covered on 3 or 4 pages, they would let him copy those 4 for 30 people on this one occasion.
So, he read us the opening of the chapter, handed out the middle, then later shared it’s conclusion in group.

I’m surprised how they handled it, but it’s their property and they can do as they wish.
Well, was the book available for sale at your location? If so, then why were you so cheap as to refuse to buy it ? I am talking about a different situation when the book is out of print or when the video is not available. Under those conditions, the publisher may be more willing to grant permission to make a copy.
 
Is buying bootlegs copies of blockbuster movie a sin? If it is a sin, is it mortal or venial? For Soldiers deployed overseas, **we have no choice **but to buy them because Big Movie theatre with current movies are not made available.

However, I cannot see tell whether this is morally right or wrong? So what is it?
Sure you have a choice. You have a choice to do something else with your time. Yes, you are in Iraq and want to have a way to relax. Can you read? Play cards? Other board games? Even charades? People in out of the way places have been making due with other pastimes for many, many years.
I will be praying for you.
 
Well, was the book available for sale at your location? If so, then why were you so cheap as to refuse to buy it ?
Uh, Bob…first off I was agreeing with your suggestion on seeing about getting a publisher’s premission to make a copy.
Secondly, why accuse me of being ‘so cheap’? :confused:

We only wanted to use one chapter of a book, not the whole thing, we fundraise our own salaries so money is very tight…I’d say that asking to publisher was just being savy.

As I shared the publisher gave premission for us to copy 4 pages of the book…so the publisher agreed…yeah, I’d say that’s rather savy.
 
Uh, Bob…first off I was agreeing with your suggestion on seeing about getting a publisher’s premission to make a copy.
Secondly, why accuse me of being ‘so cheap’? :confused:
.
Because I think there are two different situations when (1) the book is available and (2) when it is out of print. If the book is available, people should buy it when they need it, and not be so cheap as to make a copy of it. Although, I would agree to make one or two pages of it for educational purposes is OK, provided there is no objection from the publisher. The situation that I was talking about was when the book is out of print or the video was not available in the area. under those circumstances, it seems reasonable to request the publisher to make a copy and there would be some jsutfication for making or buying one copy of it. However, if this is being done on a large scale with hundreds or thousands of illegal copies being bought or sold, then I would question as to whether or not this would be legitimate.
 
I really just meant it as a joke. Should I keep my day job??
I figured it was a joke when I laughed but you may want to keep your present employment.

Maybe you could moonlight at a local stand-up club!
 
It’s theft…
Is it really theft? Especially considering that I never had any intention of buying the movie when it becomes available. 🤷

Consider a different example; My friend paid for the movie and I watched it with him at his house. Is that theft? :confused:

What’s the difference; I watched the same movie and didn’t pay for it. :hmmm:

It maybe disrespectful to the producers of the movie… but I don’t think it is theft. :twocents:
And considering the obscene amount of money that some producers make, I don’t care if I’m disrespectful to them. :rolleyes:

But, if it is a sin, I guess I need to go to confession. :o
 
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