Is feeling sadness a sin?

[TominAdelaide]

But a medium must be observed; we must not lament over trifles, nor let our complaining be prolonged or exaggerated; to do so is to evince selfishness or cowardice. Complain to God as long and as loudly as you will, for your complaints are an appeal to Him for help, and consequently are pleasing to Him. But if you fill a fellow-creature’s ear with the sad tale of all your care, he will soon weary of your conversation. Not so God; He is ever ready to hear you, and to impart to you such consolation as will cause you to forget all your sorrow. Our Lord says: "Come unto Me, all you that labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you” (Matt. xi. 28).

“Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.” The meaning of these words is this: Blessed are they who lament but little over the loss of transitory things, for God will impart to them such consolation that they will forget their sorrow; and after death He will bestow upon them celestial and eternal joys.

They that mourn are therefore not those who mourn over the loss of earthly things, e.g., the enjoyment of some pleasure. Sorrow such as that is a sign that the heart is not detached from the things of earth; it profits us no more than a plaster would heal a wound if it were laid beside, instead of on it. Sorrow is only a cure for sin. Unless our sorrow is on account of sin, it will only be harmful; as a moth doth by a garment and a worm by the wood, so the sadness of a man consumeth the heart (Prov. xxv. 20). Sadness incapacitates the soul for action; it has the same benumbing effect upon it as excessive cold has upon the body. A season of gloom and depression is an opportune moment for the devil; he avails himself of it to tempt us and make us fall, as birds of prey go out by night in quest of spoil. Hence Holy Scripture exhorts us to be cheerful. The joyfulness of the heart is the life of a man, and a never-failing treasure of holiness (Ecclus. xxx. 23). But sorrow for sin, whether our own or that of others, is pleasing to God, and is succeeded by joy and gladness. What happiness awaited the prodigal son when he returned home, after deeply deploring his sin! What joy the penitent thief experienced when Our Lord promised him paradise! What joy Magdalen felt when Christ pardoned her and commended her love! and David when, after he had bewailed his transgression (Ps. 1.), the prophet announced to him that he was forgiven! Mourning for sin can hardly be called sadness, because it is not incompatible with interior gladness. St. Jerome says: “In spite of penitential tears and heart-rending sighs I am sometimes so joyous that I fancy myself already with the angels.”

continued….

 

[TominAdelaide]

Nor is sorrow on account of the trials Providence sends us reprehensible; it too leads to joy and consolation. This was the sorrow Our Lord felt on the Mount of Olives, at the approach of His Passion; and an angel appeared to Him, strengthening Him. This was the sorrow the widow of Nairn felt when her son was carried out for burial; and Our Lord consoled her grief by restoring him to life. The apostles mourned when Christ left them and ascended into heaven, and immediately two angels came to comfort them. When God has happiness in store for us, He invariably sends some trial first to make us more humble, more grateful for His gifts; thus light is more welcome after darkness, health is better appreciated after sickness. They that mourn will also be comforted hereafter. “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, and death shall not be any more, nor mourning, nor crying, nor sorrow” (Apoc. xxi. 4). “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy” (Ps. cxxv. 5).

We should say with Job, “As it hath pleased the Lord, so it is done; blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job i. 21), or with Our Lord in the Garden of Olives, “Not My will, but Thine be done.” We should behave as a sensible man behaves when he is sick; he willingly obeys the injunctions of the physician. God has lightened our sufferings for us, not only by His own example, but also by the promise of an eternal reward. See how the apostles rejoiced in their scourging (Acts v. 41). The Christian under suffering should rejoice as a workman rejoices who labors much, and looks forward to good pay, or as a tradesman, who amid the toilsome monotony of his business, thinks of the delightful holiday that is not far off. We must grasp sufferings as men grasp stinging nettles if they do not wish to be stung, firmly and boldly, not lightly and timorously; then they will do us no harm. In suffering we should repeat again and again the Gloria Patri. Men too often grumble and grow impatient under their sufferings. If a man asks the return of something he has lent us, we give it back with thanks; but if God does so, we grumble and are discontented. This want of patience increases our sufferings, besides offending God. The impatient are like oxen, who kick against the goad and only wound themselves the more. Yet it is no sin to be sorrowful and troubled under suffering; for Our Lord in the Garden of Olives was sorrowful even unto death. We must never despond in evil days, for after sorrow and suffering come joy and gladness.

 

[o_mlly]

However, I’ve been wondering: is it a sin to be sad?

Sadness, an emotion of the sensitive appetite, is a passion whose opposite is joy. (See CCC#1762-1775).

In the presence of evil, anger and fear move us to sadness. The feeling of sadness moves to the intellect to discern the proper actions. If the acts we freely choose to do are good then the sadness is good, and vice versa, i.e., improper actions that are evil render the sadness evil.