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FuzzyBunny116
Guest
Is it?
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HappyCatholic01
Guest
Hell yes.
Sorry, couldn’t resist.
I think it defames us and degrades God’s vision for us, so yes, but I believe it would be a venial.
Someone else probably knows.
Sorry, couldn’t resist.
I think it defames us and degrades God’s vision for us, so yes, but I believe it would be a venial.
Someone else probably knows.
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Fidelis
Guest
Depends what you mean by cussing. There’s a difference between a number of things that usually are put into this category: blasphemy, cursing, false oaths, and vulgar words.
From the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
Vulgar language, as mentioned above, is conduct unbecoming a child of God: it dishonors God’s image in us and lends scandal and bad example to those who hear it.
Hope that helps!
From the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
Cursing (the calling down some evil upon someone) is contrary to the virtue of charity.
Vulgar language, as mentioned above, is conduct unbecoming a child of God: it dishonors God’s image in us and lends scandal and bad example to those who hear it.
Hope that helps!
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Edwin1961
Guest
Anger within itself isn’t a sin, but if anger exceeds a certain limit and causes sin to occur, then anger is a sin. With that said, if you are cussing to break a Commandment or causing someone else to anger and sin, then you have sinned…I hope this is correct.
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Mijoy2
Guest
I suspect it is wrong. Since coming back to the church I find I seldom take the Lord’s name in vain any longer. However I find it hard to break a 45 year old habit of use of four letter words, particularily when I am frustrated or angry. But I am trying…
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Fidelis
Guest
St. Paul says “Be angry, but do not sin” (Eph 4:2). To me that implies that along with righteous anger (like Jesus displayed in driving the money-changers out of the temple precincts), there is anger that is not righteous (Ga 5:19-20; Eph 4:26; Eph 4:31; Col 3:8; 1Ti 2:8). We know also that “the anger of man does not work the righteousness of God” (Jas 1:20).
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thistle
Guest
I think using God’s name intentionally as a curse would be a mortal sin (Second Commandment).
I think Using the Lord’s name lightly, in surprise or anger (habitual, not thinking) would be a venial sin as would cursing thoughtlessly.
I think Using the Lord’s name lightly, in surprise or anger (habitual, not thinking) would be a venial sin as would cursing thoughtlessly.
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puzzleannie
Guest
I have to laugh at your title. Our seminary rector, a wonderful priest from Mexico whose English is excellent, but spoken with a very strong accent, came to speak to our confirmation class, and fielded questions after his talk. One of the girls asked if this was a sin, and he went to great length to talk about the ways this was an offense, which commandments were broken etc. The girls and her friends were looking more and more horrified as he spoke. I felt I had to ask for clarification from the girl about her questions. Sure enough, she had asked about kissing.
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JLove
Guest
When it comes to vulgar language it is also dependent on the company. (cf. Rom 14:21 and 1 Cor 8:13)
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Fidelis
Guest
I think that should be clarified. The verses you cited had to do, not specifically with vulgar language, but with avoiding doing things that would make people stumble in their faith. The situation at hand had to do with eating meat sacrificed to idols. It was not the eating that was wrong, but the association it had to idolatry.
Your answer would imply that, if the persons you are speaking vulgarly in front of probably won’t be scandalized by it (either because they were “mature” or typically spoke that way themselves) that it would be OK. This, of course, is arguable, since vulgar language, unlike eating, is not a normal manner of speech. There is no reason for a Christian to use vulgar language except out of bad habit (which one should work to overcome), or to be socially acceptable to a certain crowd. Romans 12:2 says: **Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect. **
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JLove
Guest
You got it. I’m not condoning vulgarity, just throwing something out there. I don’t personally use such language, (I find ignorant. There are some many other, better words which can be used to express ones feelings.) but I have friends and family who do, and a lot of times they will apologize to me. I always tell them that it does not offend me and therefore is not wrong. That’s all I was saying.
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Fidelis
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That makes the distinction between using vulgar language and tolerating it when you consider the source. As you said, it is situational. If you were in a biker bar, you wouldn’t insist on genteel discourse everytime someone opened their mouth (unless you are tired of living 
). However, if your potty-mouthed cousin Louie invariably let’s loose a blue streak in front of your wife and kids everytime he comes over, such tolerance should give way to fraternal correction, at the very least.
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riverman
Guest
thistle, I don’t know about this. I have a CD I got from the Mary Foundation about confession. Fr. Larry is the one who gives this great talk. He says in it that using God’s name in vain is a sin, PERIOD! He mentioned how in the old days, people were put to death for it. He also said even if it was used in the phrase, “Oh my G_d!” it was still a sin. Sounds good to me. I have also heard, if you see a multimillionare drop a $100 bill and keep it and see a homeless person with 2 kids drop $1 and keep it, you have commited a sin either way. Sure, one is worse than the other but they are both still sinfull acts.
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stanley123
Guest
I believe that this priest is absolutely correct.
Unfortunately, it appears that not all Roman Catholic priests agree with him on this. For example, if you would read the books of the Catholic priest Father A. Greeley, you would see lewd, vile, vulgar, profane and blasphemous language used. And on the cover jacket of one of Father Greeley’s books is a quote by a Catholic archbishop or cardinal praising his work.
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trumpet152
Guest
Using the name of God in vain is wrong, but what about “vulgar language” and what is vulgar?
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JLove
Guest
Vulgar: coming from the Latin vulgaris meaning common, ordinary, or usual. Needless to say I can’t give any examples here, but call to mind pretty much any term would wouldn’t utter at church and it will probably be vulgar, granted it’s not a curse swearing formula. (ie. all the various names for genital body parts.)
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m134e5
Guest
Generally speaking, no- it’s not a sin. It’s just bad manners.
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Fidelis
Guest
Vulgar language, defined, is "coarse: conspicuously and tastelessly indecent; “coarse language”; “a crude joke”; “crude behavior”; “an earthy sense of humor”; “a revoltingly gross expletive”; “a vulgar gesture”; “full of language so vulgar it should have been edited”
As mentioned above, is conduct unbecoming a child of God: it dishonors God’s image in us and lends scandal and bad example to those who hear it. Scandal and bad example are both, at least, venial sins.
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thistle
Guest
You might well be right. I wasn’t talking with authority. I was trying differentiate between mortal and venial. If someone bangs their leg on a desk and says in surprise “Oh G_d” or something similar I’m not sure that could be construed as full consent of the will as it just popped out at the moment of pain. Mortal sin would require full consent of the will. I think also that if you cursed or took God’s name in vain in a dream there is no sin as there is no full consent of the will while you are asleep.
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stanley123
Guest
I have to agree with the Protestant missionaries who come to my door preaching about using decent language. What they have informed me was that Christians are called to use decent and clean speech and that this is indicated in Ephesians 4:29, and Ephesians 5: 3,4.
At the same time I will have to disagree with the Catholic authorties such as Cardinal Francis George, archbishop of Chicago, who characterises the novels of Father Greeley as “What he is doing is reevangelizing the imagination, using fiction to address the faith and the mysteries of the faith. That’s and extraordinarily significant project.”
I can’t agree with that, as I read the novels of Father Greeley, i see the most lewd, gutter and blasphemous language used throughout, and why is this not a violation of the Biblical injunctions we see in Ephesians 4:29, and Ephesians 5: 3,4.
To give a simple example, we read on page 39 of the Father Greeley’s novel, Priestly sins, that “God can keep his ******* second chance!” I have bleeped out the word which begins with the sixth letter of the alphabet.
There are other examples such as for example, when students are asked to participate in and show to the public lewd plays such as the V_monologues at a Catholic College, Holy Cross college, Worcester, Masssachusetts on Ash Wednesday.
However, I notice that at the local Baptist college, no such lewd plays with this type of gutter language are shown any day of the year. My personal opinion is that the Baptist college in this area is absolutely correct and the Catholic college which has shown this type of lewd play on Ash Wednesday is absolutely wrong. However, I have no authority over what is going on in the Catholic Church. I guess that in Catholicism, it is OK to use and to write this type of gutter, blasphemous language, and Catholics don’t think it is a sin at all, otherwise, why do we get statements from a Catholic Cardinal praising the work of Father Greeley?
At the same time I will have to disagree with the Catholic authorties such as Cardinal Francis George, archbishop of Chicago, who characterises the novels of Father Greeley as “What he is doing is reevangelizing the imagination, using fiction to address the faith and the mysteries of the faith. That’s and extraordinarily significant project.”
I can’t agree with that, as I read the novels of Father Greeley, i see the most lewd, gutter and blasphemous language used throughout, and why is this not a violation of the Biblical injunctions we see in Ephesians 4:29, and Ephesians 5: 3,4.
To give a simple example, we read on page 39 of the Father Greeley’s novel, Priestly sins, that “God can keep his ******* second chance!” I have bleeped out the word which begins with the sixth letter of the alphabet.
There are other examples such as for example, when students are asked to participate in and show to the public lewd plays such as the V_monologues at a Catholic College, Holy Cross college, Worcester, Masssachusetts on Ash Wednesday.
However, I notice that at the local Baptist college, no such lewd plays with this type of gutter language are shown any day of the year. My personal opinion is that the Baptist college in this area is absolutely correct and the Catholic college which has shown this type of lewd play on Ash Wednesday is absolutely wrong. However, I have no authority over what is going on in the Catholic Church. I guess that in Catholicism, it is OK to use and to write this type of gutter, blasphemous language, and Catholics don’t think it is a sin at all, otherwise, why do we get statements from a Catholic Cardinal praising the work of Father Greeley?
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