Is swearing a sin?

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coolcatholicguy

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I know it’s probably not God’s favorite thing for us to swear (meaning use bad words), but is it a sin that needs tho be confessed?
 
By swearing, I think you actually mean “cussing” right? Regular profanity? Now, blasphemy (Saying the Lord’s name in vain) and cursing (Outright wishing evil upon someone) are definitely mortal sins.

When it comes to profanity, I would have to say it is not a mortal sin, honestly. I do admit, I suffer the problem of having a bit of a sailor’s mouth in the company of my peers, but I do know to keep my words in good taste depending on my company.

I would say, when it comes to language, we gotta include intent on this one. For instance, if you, dismissively say to someone, “Ah, go to h*ll”, is this a curse? You don’t mean it in a way in which you actually want that person to be damned, you just kinda mean it in the sense of, “Ah, you’re full of it.”

Basically, when you use God’s name with a cuss word, that’s mortal. Cuss words by themselves, unless you’re really truly meaning it, are not mortal.
 
Using profanities, especially if habitual, may not be a mortal sin, but it is certainly an imperfection which should be confessed. With the help of God’s sacramental grace, a deliberate intention to avoid swearing, a conscious apology to the Lord and any offended hearers when it habitually occurs and continued prayer, such bad habits can be remedied.
If you habitually blaspheme - using the name of God, Jesus etc when not talking to Him or about Him - then you could, when you find yourself committing this sin, turn it into a prayer. For example, if you have exclaimed, “Oh, my God!” Then, realising what you have done you could verbally or mentally add a prayer to the Lord about the situation which prompted the exclamation, thus turning the sin into an occasion for good. If you continue to do this, then you will find that you overcome the habit of blasphemy and form the habit of prayer.
I will pray for those who struggle with this fault.
 
I am not certain whether using profanity is sinful, it certainly does not glorify God. I will say this; my conversion from atheism to the Catholic Church was sudden and mystical. One of the outward signs of my converson was that my habitual use of profanity was immediately removed without any conscious effort on my part. In fact, I did not realize for several weeks that I had ceased using profanity. It was only after a co-worker asked my why I stopped using harsh language that I realized that I stopped uttering profanities. It is now actually painful for me to hear profanity and I find it very to even think of those words.
 
I couldn’t help but say you have a wonderful testimony. Isn’t it wonderful that God took away your cursing without you even being aware of it? I remember a man I worked with a lot of years ago had the same problem. He came to know God but shortly after he started to curse using the name of Jesus but he realized what he had done immediately. Instead of ending his sentence after uttering the name of Jesus Christ he continued by adding three more words … I love you. He told us what had happened and I will never forget it. God Bless
 
rpp said:
I am not certain whether using profanity is sinful, it certainly does not glorify God. I will say this; my conversion from atheism to the Catholic Church was sudden and mystical. One of the outward signs of my converson was that my habitual use of profanity was immediately removed without any conscious effort on my part. In fact, I did not realize for several weeks that I had ceased using profanity. It was only after a co-worker asked my why I stopped using harsh language that I realized that I stopped uttering profanities. It is now actually painful for me to hear profanity and I find it very to even think of those words.
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That’s awesome. My priest hasn’t talked about profanity, but he has talked about smoking and said that unless it’s excessive, or like gambling, you use your rent check and the bills go unpaid, or like drinking, if you say “i’m gonna get smashed tonight” or drink to the point of throwing up, that would be a mortal sin because you have the intention and premeditation and it is serious matter. Smoking if not excessive is not a sin, but a character flaw. I would think profanity when not using God’s name, or cursing someone, or causing another person harm would be classified as a character flaw. I would like another Priest’s comment on this to be sure.
 
See Second Commandment in Catechism of Catholic Church.

Briefly summarized
2160 “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth” (*Ps *8:1)!
2161 The second commandment enjoins respect for the Lord’s name. The name of the Lord is holy.
2162 The second commandment forbids every improper use of God’s name. Blasphemy is the use of the name of God, of Jesus Christ, of the Virgin Mary, and of the saints in an offensive way.
2163 False oaths call on God to be witness to a lie. Perjury is a grave offence against the Lord who is always faithful to his promises.
2164 “Do not swear whether by the Creator, or any creature, except truthfully, of necessity, and with reverence” (St. Ignatius of Loyola, Spiritual Exercises, 38).
2165 In Baptism, the Christian receives his name in the Church. Parents, godparents, and the pastor are to see that he be given a Christian name. The patron saint provides a model of charity and the assurance of his prayer.
2166 The Christian begins his prayers and activities with the Sign of the Cross: “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”
2167 God calls each one by name (cf. *Isa *43:1).
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Matthew 5:34-35
“But I say to you, make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, or by Jerusalem, for it is THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING.”
 
Thou shalt not take the lord’s name in vain…

The rule for my daughter has always been, you don’t say God’s name unles syou are talking to him. I don’t get too upset with the occasional outburst of darn it, or ****…much else earns a frown because it just doesn’t sound nice coming out of a 12-year old child’s mouth 🙂 . The answer to the OP is it depends…what “swearing” is being done. Swearing on the bible to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth is not sinful.
 
JanetF said:
Thou shalt not take the lord’s name in vain…

The rule for my daughter has always been, you don’t say God’s name unles syou are talking to him. I don’t get too upset with the occasional outburst of darn it, or ****…much else earns a frown because it just doesn’t sound nice coming out of a 12-year old child’s mouth 🙂 . The answer to the OP is it depends…what “swearing” is being done. Swearing on the bible to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth is not sinful.
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It’s not considered a good thing. As the post i have quoted says and others, Thou shalt not take the lord’s name in vain… so its not a good thing to swear
 
=coolcatholicguy;6540029]I know it’s probably not God’s favorite thing for us to swear (meaning use bad words), but is it a sin that needs tho be confessed?/QUOTE]
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YES!
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**Matt. 15: [11]" **not what goes into the mouth defiles a man, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man." [17] Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and so passes on? [18] But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a man".
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**Matt.5: 33-37 **"[33] "Again you have heard that it was said to the men of old, You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.' But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. **Let what you say be simply Yes’ or `No’; anything more than this comes from evil. **
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Two points to keep in mind:
  1. If you can discipline your tongue, it’s easier to discipline yourself in other matters; this works the opposite way, too.
  2. Always remember that you are all times a representative of Christ and His Church, so you need to be on your best behavior. Your negative actions may also reflect negatively on the Church (the abuse scandal, for example).
 
=joedaddy27;6566044]Two points to keep in mind:
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  1. If you can discipline your tongue, it’s easier to discipline yourself in other matters; this works the opposite way, too.
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  1. Always remember that you are all times a representative of Christ and His Church, so you need to be on your best behavior. Your negative actions may also reflect negatively on the Church (the abuse scandal, for example).
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GREAT ADVICE for ALL of us:thumbsup:
 
I’m not talking about taking the Lord’s name in vain, but just the occasional “hell” or “d***” or “s***”

Sorry for the profanity used there as well.

Also, my dad and some of my friends are what I consider good people and are all Christian, but they occasionally get mad and let out a “God d***”. I’m not sure if they know the graveness of this sin or not. Is this still a mortal sin?
 
I find it interesting that so far the conversation is leaning toward blaspheming the Lord’s name. I’m against that, for obvious reasons, but what about other words that have nothing to do with God? In different cultures, these words do not have the same weight as they do other places. Isn’t there a term in England that references blood that is considered egregious, but in America it’s not anything to sneeze at? And in Germany, there is a town called F***ing. I think these words should be avoided in proper, respectful conversation, but in every day conversation with friends, what’s bad about them since they aren’t taking God’s name in vain or commanding someone to go certain places?
 
plinko said:
I find it interesting that so far the conversation is leaning toward blaspheming the Lord’s name. I’m against that, for obvious reasons, but what about other words that have nothing to do with God? In different cultures, these words do not have the same weight as they do other places. Isn’t there a term in England that references blood that is considered egregious, but in America it’s not anything to sneeze at? And in Germany, there is a town called F***ing. I think these words should be avoided in proper, respectful conversation, but in every day conversation with friends, what’s bad about them since they aren’t taking God’s name in vain or commanding someone to go certain places?
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Well, those sort of non-blasphemous swearwords tend mostly to making light either of God’s gift of our sexuality (fk), or parts of the human anatomy, which is also His gift (ct, dk, pk), or else to make derogatory comment about someone’s birth (b*d), or compare people to lower animals (bh).

None of this is becoming to the dignity of human beings who are made in the image and likeness of God and are not mere animals, nor the dignity of the human body, which as I said was his creation.
 
LilyM said:
Well, those sort of non-blasphemous swearwords tend mostly to making light either of God’s gift of our sexuality (fk), or parts of the human anatomy, which is also His gift (ct, dk, pk), or else to make derogatory comment about someone’s birth (b*d), or compare people to lower animals (bh).

None of this is becoming to the dignity of human beings who are made in the image and likeness of God and are not mere animals, nor the dignity of the human body, which as I said was his creation.
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Great explanation…makes total sense! 😃
 
=coolcatholicguy;6602218]I’m not talking about taking the Lord’s name in vain, but just the occasional “hell” or “d***” or “s***”
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Sorry for the profanity used there as well.
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Also, my dad and some of my friends are what I consider good people and are all Christian, but they occasionally get mad and let out a “God d***”. I’m not sure if they know the graveness of this sin or not. Is this still a mortal sin?
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Intent is always the key to the gravity of the sin! Anger, bad habit, fustration will all lessen the level of guilt.

***Jas.5: 12 “But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath, but let your yes be yes and your no be no, that you may not fall under condemnation”. ***
 
Using profanity is uncharitable and venially sinful. It is crass and unbecoming lips that utter the holy name of God. St. John Vianney and many other saints have sermons about this. I highly recommend them.

Objectively, any combination of syllables is not good or bad. It is by convention that language takes its meaning, but once a word develops a certain bad/offensive connotation, it would become venially sinful to use it.
 
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