Is getting intoxicated a mortal sin?

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dumspirospero

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Last night a bunch of team members and Neophytes got together to celebrate Confirmation…I must admit I drank too much and was intoxicated…however, I did not drive anywhere, nor get belligerent and rude, nor did I have impure thoughts…it was just good clean fun…I just got a little drunk. Is that a mortal sin?
 
Why would it be?

Under certain circumstances, it could be.
Mortal sin has to be serious matter, know that it is serious matter not care that it is and do it anyway.
Since you have to ask Is that a mortal sin?, you do not fulfill one of the requirments nor would you fulfill the third.

The answer though is no.
 
Was it intentional? If so, yes it is a sin, although not sure which kind. If you didn’t intend on getting drunk, but it kind of happened, I’ld say no.
 
Did you have the intent of drinking too much? As you were drinking, were you cognizant of when you had probably reached your safe limit but kept drinking anyway, knowing you’d probably have too much if you continued?
 
Yeah…I knew when I was starting to get a little tipsy, yet I continued to drink more…partially because the host kept asking me to stay and drink and partially because I was having a good time and didn’t want to go…
 
Well, we’d then have to establish what grave matter was violated. Regardless, you didn’t know it was a grave matter, or you wouldn’t be asking.

Is anyone certain what, if any, grave matter getting too drunk specifically falls under? I’ve always thought it was grave, but now that I think about it I can’t really place it directly under any. What I can definately place it under is recklessness, but again that seems to fit more with “near occaision of sin” than anything.
 
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Ghosty:
Well, we’d then have to establish what grave matter was violated. Regardless, you didn’t know it was a grave matter, or you wouldn’t be asking.

Is anyone certain what, if any, grave matter getting too drunk specifically falls under? I’ve always thought it was grave, but now that I think about it I can’t really place it directly under any. What I can definately place it under is recklessness, but again that seems to fit more with “near occaision of sin” than anything.
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Prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance. (As per the CCC.)

Drunkenness is drinking without moderation, and is essentially gluttony.

It also is an injustice to one’s intellect, as it distorts our judgement and will.
 
St. Thomas places it under temperance, I believe. To drink to excess would interfere with social communication (interfere with the celebration and sharing of happiness) and it can impact the health of the user (and hence safety and such). It would be wrong to drink enough to do these things. Also, if a person were an addict, the considerations could change.

If we are talking about mortal sin here, it sounds like not. All the usual conditions need to be considered (intention, etc), plus slight overuse of alcohol seems like it would be light matter, unless one can foresee a grave side effect will take place perhaps because one needs to be at their best for a job or whatever.

I think if an airline pilot used alcohol before work, it would be very grave. A lot of circumstances surround alcohol.
 
Right, but I was under the impression that “grave matter” in this case involved the Ten Commandments, and not the Seven Deadly Sins. The CCC, paragraph 1854 confirms this. Now I’ve always understood reckless drunkeness to be mortal sin, now that I think about it I can’t figure out what it is “folded into” in the Ten Commandments, which are the indicators of “grave matter”.

I’m certain there IS an answer, I just can’t find it 😛
 
If we are talking about mortal sin here, it sounds like not. All the usual conditions need to be considered (intention, etc), plus slight overuse of alcohol seems like it would be light matter, unless one can foresee a grave side effect will take place perhaps because one needs to be at their best for a job or whatever.

I think if an airline pilot used alcohol before work, it would be very grave. A lot of circumstances surround alcohol.
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Exactly. It seems to be a venial sin barring outside circumstances, such as the pilot drinking before flying, or anyone drinking before driving. Off the top of my head I can’t see how drinking heavily constitutes grave matter in and of itself, unless one drinks to the point of life-threatening alcohol poisoning.

Again, this goes against my typical, ingrained response, but now I’m wondering where I get this ingrained response from. Perhaps this is worthy of “Ask an Apologist”?
 
Ok, found a thread on Ask an Apologist that deals with it, and the question was asked by this thread’s originator no less. You can find it here:

forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=35180&highlight=alcohol

The problem I have with the answer given is that it still deals with the surrounding circumstances, and not the drinking itself. Is it a mortal sin simply by virtue of the fact that other circumstances might arise? That doesn’t seem quite right to me.
 
That is why I am posting this now…because the answer has never been given clearly. It is always side stepped by apologist and even by the Catechism…it makes it sound as if it is only a grave matter if you drink and drive, harm someone, etc…What about just drinking to the point of becoming drunk without driving, harming anyone, degrading anyone, etc…just having a good time.

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Ghosty:
Ok, found a thread on Ask an Apologist that deals with it, and the question was asked by this thread’s originator no less. You can find it here:

forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=35180&highlight=alcohol

The problem I have with the answer given is that it still deals with the surrounding circumstances, and not the drinking itself. Is it a mortal sin simply by virtue of the fact that other circumstances might arise? That doesn’t seem quite right to me.
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dumspirospero:
Last night a bunch of team members and Neophytes got together to celebrate Confirmation…I must admit I drank too much and was intoxicated…however, I did not drive anywhere, nor get belligerent and rude, nor did I have impure thoughts…it was just good clean fun…I just got a little drunk. Is that a mortal sin?
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Hi
Getting drunk is not good clean fun. 1 Corinthians chapter 6.
Co 6:9 Do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor abusers, nor homosexuals,

1Co 6:10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

I’m not saying it’s wrong to have a drink but when people do drink to much there resistance against sin is weaker than when they are straight. Do Catholics usally celebrate someone dedicating there life to Christ by getting drunk? I would certainly
hope not. Although my wifes family are all Catholics and I guess thats what they do. The Catholic church my wife used to go to was raising for a new Community Center they were building. They had a Family fun night to help raise money. They had a beer garden and auctioned of old bottles of wine and whisky, and many were very drunk. It had alot to do with her leaving the church.
In Him and Only Him, Dave.
 
Getting drunk one night does not make you a drunkard…getting drunk every night makes you a drunkard. Why would you guess that just because your wife’s family is Catholic, they would get drunk? Catholics are not the only Christians that drink. And if your wife left the Church because some adults got drunk one night, then her Faith must not have been that solid to begin with. I feel guily for having gotten drunk last night, but I was not sure whether or not I was guilty of mortal sin…that is why I was asking…It is not because I am hoping it is only a venial sin so I can go and do it daily without losing Sanctifying Grace.
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oudave:
Hi
Getting drunk is not good clean fun. 1 Corinthians chapter 6.
Co 6:9 Do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor abusers, nor homosexuals,

1Co 6:10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

I’m not saying it’s wrong to have a drink but when people do drink to much there resistance against sin is weaker than when they are straight. Do Catholics usally celebrate someone dedicating there life to Christ by getting drunk? I would certainly
hope not. Although my wifes family are all Catholics and I guess thats what they do. The Catholic church my wife used to go to was raising for a new Community Center they were building. They had a Family fun night to help raise money. They had a beer garden and auctioned of old bottles of wine and whisky, and many were very drunk. It had alot to do with her leaving the church.
In Him and Only Him, Dave.
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dumspirospero:
Getting drunk one night does not make you a drunkard…getting drunk every night makes you a drunkard. Why would you guess that just because your wife’s family is Catholic, they would get drunk? Catholics are not the only Christians that drink. And if your wife left the Church because some adults got drunk one night, then her Faith must not have been that solid to begin with. I feel guily for having gotten drunk last night, but I was not sure whether or not I was guilty of mortal sin…that is why I was asking…It is not because I am hoping it is only a venial sin so I can go and do it daily without losing Sanctifying Grace.
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Hi
I’m sorry, I didnt mean to imply that you are a drunk. It’s just that it usually doesn’t stop with one time and usually gets easier each time after that. I was an alcoholic and am only sharing with you my thoughts. The point about my wifes family and her former church is that the churches stance on drinking is far to weak.
In Him and Only Him, Dave.
 
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Ghosty:
The problem I have with the answer given is that it still deals with the surrounding circumstances, and not the drinking itself. Is it a mortal sin simply by virtue of the fact that other circumstances might arise? That doesn’t seem quite right to me.
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I think that impairment for no corresponding reason is irrational. Let’s say alcohol did absolutely nothing but make your reason and intelligence cloudy. It would be a sin to then drink it in a lack of circumstances. There is no reason to just become stupider or less coordinated. Perhaps the good violated would be body/mind integrity or health, which probably could be venial or serious depending on the injury. So this is not a case of “other circumstances”. It is just direct harm to oneself, even if temporary. I would consider it grave harm to myself if someone else made me totally drunk against my will. I’d be furious. Don’t know for sure if that consideration matters.

However, alcohol does not merely cloud your brain. It can do other things. So when you drink it, there is a balance of what the expected outcomes are. You could drink it for food, to relax, for your heart, for social effect, to dull pain (before better medecine existed).

I think it would be wrong to drink it precisely to get high or for an experience, with no end in mind. If one has no good in mind, then the body will be impaired by the alcohol for no real reason. Chemically altered conscienceness seems a questionable goal in itself to accept detriment to natural functioning.

But the context here is social drinking, not just drinking. Social drinking causes there to be the good of improved social interactions. But that is only a reason in so far as it is an improvement of the social aspect. If one is drunk, it decays the social interactions and at most the individual is enjoying being high, but it isn’t making the group communicate better.

Any other thoughts?

Ghosty, I’m a bit clueless about your reference to CCC1854 and the ten commandments. They aren’t in that paragraph?
 
However, alcohol does not merely cloud your brain. It can do other things. So when you drink it, there is a balance of what the expected outcomes are. You could drink it for food, to relax, for your heart, for social effect, to dull pain (before better medecine existed).
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Now this I can understand a bit more. I know that in ancient Jewish festivals, and modern Orthodox Jewish festivals, drinking alcohol properly is considered to enhance the religious piety of the event, which I’ve experienced myself. I can understand how just drinking to get drunk, with no higher purpose (or to the point that it hinders the higher purpose), can indeed fall under self-destructive behavior, not unlike self-mutilation.
Ghosty, I’m a bit clueless about your reference to CCC1854 and the ten commandments. They aren’t in that paragraph?
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That would be because I screwed up and posted the wrong paragraph. It’s 1858 :o
 
I feel guily for having gotten drunk last night, but I was not sure whether or not I was guilty of mortal sin…that is why I was asking…It is not because I am hoping it is only a venial sin so I can go and do it daily without losing Sanctifying Grace.
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Doubt VERY MUCH that this was mortal sin, especially since you had no idea before teh fact that it was mortal.

Finally, I’m not convinced that ocassioanl intoxication is a mortal sin. If it were, why then Cana? Jesus would not have worked the miracle if he were contributing to mortal sin.
 
Sorry for the confusion and congrats on being able to abstain from alcohol…I too plan on completely eliminating it from my life all together. God Bless
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oudave:
Hi
I’m sorry, I didnt mean to imply that you are a drunk. It’s just that it usually doesn’t stop with one time and usually gets easier each time after that. I was an alcoholic and am only sharing with you my thoughts. The point about my wifes family and her former church is that the churches stance on drinking is far to weak.
In Him and Only Him, Dave.
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If you drink so much that you lose use of our reason or become unconscious then it would be a mortal sin, provided that was your intent or you were reckless about it and you knew it was a mortal sin.
 
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