Is it a sin,to consider sinning?

[jr101]

would it be a sin to consider, or contemplate sinning- not necessarily deciding to sin but rather weighing up your options. is this simply part of temptation and is it wrong to perhaps have your resistance/will weakened? Sometimes after battling temptations I find my will weakened and rather challenging or recoiling from sinful thoughts I let them pass over, or passively ignore them, often sometimes when I feel as if I have sinned and am overwhelmed with dread/guilt (worsened by scruples)

 

[anon67074017]

I think you actually have to do the action to sin.

 

[Jared2914]

We can’t control all the thoughts that pop into our heads, but we can control how we react to them. A thought to sin appearing in your mind is temptation. Being tempted is not a sin. The sin occurs in how you react to the temptation. At some point, your conscience should question the holiness of your thoughts. That is the point when you have a choice to make, the choice to do good or evil. Before that point, you could not commit any sin because you did not give consent. Consent is given when the choice to sin is made.

 

[LethalMouse]

We can’t control all the thoughts that pop into our heads, but we can control how we react to them. A thought to sin appearing in your mind is temptation. Being tempted is not a sin. The sin occurs in how you react to the temptation. At some point, your conscience should question the holiness of your thoughts. That is the point when you have a choice to make, the choice to do good or evil. Before that point, you could not commit any sin because you did not give consent. Consent is given when the choice to sin is made.

Well, I would argue that the quick pop in thought of lust is not a sin at all… However choosing to remain in that thought pattern consciously and such would perhaps be a bit sinful… but also not be to scrupulous about it…ugh common sense. Not acting is paramount though, pure thought is not a big deal man… we will rock purgatory together I am having my DJ friend come with me.

 

[powerofk]

Here’s the thing - it’s a sin if your thoughts are actually are plans or intent to sin, even if you later stop yourself from your action or do not have the ability to carry it out. But… passing thoughts, weighing options, etc. are not sins in and of themselves. It’s only dwelling on those thoughts that makes them sinful.

 

[Eichelbaum]

There’s a great article I would recommend you read.

One of the great principles you’ll find therein is this one:

If you are not certain about your consent, you did not consent.

The article gives numerous examples of this principle, my favorite being the one about a man asking a woman to marry him. Does she know whether or not she said yes? Does she wonder about it? Of course not: she has no doubt about whether or not she consented.

… and THAT is the sort of consent of the will we have to have in order for us to commit a sin with our thoughts.

Moreover: Grave matter + full knowledge + PARTIAL consent = venial sin.

If you’re in some way resisting temptations, especially dealing with the sixth and ninth commandments, then you’re at most giving partial consent to them, all other things being equal.

Now, someone mentioned pure thought not being a big deal. This is true, so long as our will doesn’t consent to those thoughts! The entire ninth commandment, after all, deals with sins of the thought.

Finally, from the article, here’s a great commentary on this entire situation of having impure thoughts go through one’s mind, and whether or not one has sinned during that process:

“Now comes the question of temptation to mortal sin. Let’s say that an indecent but attractive picture flashes through a man’s mind. Later, when he recalls having had that thought, he asks himself whether or not he consented to it.

“It is the clearest thing in the world; if he consented, he knows that he did, and that is all there is to it. Or let’s say that he fought it away and vigorously said no; then he knows for a certain that he did not consent to it.

But if he remembered only that he was very confused and muddled and excited at the thought, that he liked the temptation and yet knew it was a sin, that he wanted to accept it and yet felt that he must not do so, that in the end his mind was spinning around in circles, what then?

“The answer is very clear-cut: If he is absolutely sure that he was not absolutely sure, then he was not sure at all. And if he was not sure whether or not he consented, then he didn‟t consent.

“And the person with scruples just has to say, „If I am not absolutely sure whether or not I consented, I did not consent.‟”