Is using the Internet the whole day a mortal sin?

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Even if I used for good purpose, that is. Can’t find any information on that.

I’m asking because I feel like I’m addicted to being numbed to my surroundings and focusing solely on mental activity through the Internet. It’s like narrowing my consciousness, and a way of relieving boredom.

What do you think?
 
Much depends upon your station in life. Are you a dependent minor living in your parents’ home? Or a university student? Or married, and if so, with or without children? Or something else?

By being on the Internet all day, what other activities are you not doing?

Are you not going to work, forcing others to support you when you’re perfectly able to support yourself? I’d say that’s pretty grave.

Are you not spending time with your children and leaving all responsibility for their upbringing to your spouse? I’d say that’s pretty grave.

Are you shutting your spouse out, preferring to browse the Web instead? I’d say that’s pretty grave.

Are you neglecting school work or university studies, or leaving housework undone? I’d say that’s pretty grave.

Even if none of these or other similar scenarios apply, given the amount of need in the world I can’t imagine there isn’t a more productive way to spend one’s time, particularly if one has so much of it undedicated to other tasks.
The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.
-Matthew 9:37-38 (RSV-CE)
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Could you please give an example of “a good purpose” for which you would surf the 'Net all day?
 
If trully a purpose united completely with God, then no, being on the internet all day is what you ought to do. In as much it is not united with what Jesus wants you to do, it misses the mark.
 
UpUpAndAway said:
Could you please give an example of “a good purpose” for which you would surf the 'Net all day?
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You might come up more with those of us who read/study online on a regular basis. But that doesn’t sound like what’s going on here.
 
I am not sure why you would think that internet use might be a sin? What sin would that be?

There are sins of omission, where we neglect our responsibilities; but that really has nothing to do with the internet.
 
Assuming you’re not using the Internet for sinful things (porn, sexual affairs, harassing people, excessive gambling etc) then use of the Internet is not what is sinful.

If you are neglecting your work or family responsibilities in order to waste time, then the sin is that you neglected your work or family, regardless of whether you spent time on the Internet or taking a walk in the park.

I use the Internet all day for my work for many years and I also spend a lot of leisure time on it reading, watching videos or talking to friends. It can be a way to de-stress, but if I feel I am spending too much time on it I just take a break. There is no need to make every habit that needs to be checked sometimes into a big sin.
 
Thanks for your responses, they got me thinking, especially if there are things I should take care of that I wasn’t aware of 🙂

To answer some of the questions, an example of a good use of Internet in my book would be anything that brings one closer to God, maybe helping others, finding solutions to problems. There are a lot of things. Example of neutral would be purely for one’s entertainment, like watching funny videos, or reading things which aren’t necessarily helpful to us but just entertain us, satisfy our curiosity, etc… And example of bad would be one that does harm to others and oneself, such as the mentioned in above post or excess of the self-entertainment things.
I am not sure why you would think that internet use might be a sin? What sin would that be?
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Laziness? That “cozy” feeling, affecting your brain and consciousness in negative way. It’s like watching movies one after another on a couch, except you are googling information endlessly, or watching funny videos on youtube and forgetting about the world around. I don’t know, is that a sin? It always felt so wrong to me in a way, for example even when I was a kid, and I got up from the couch after hours of watching TV and doing nothing, just being as lazy as one can be…

I’m not saying this is the case here, but I’m afraid I’m addicted to the pleasant feeling of “turning my surroundings off”, even when I’m doing things I consider good.
 
If you are meeting all your obligations, it wouldn’t necessarily be sinful to surf the net all day (assuming you’re not looking at anything sinful or that draws you away from Our Lord).

If your recovering from an illness or injury? Internet can keep your mind engaged and reach out to other people.
Taking the occasional mental health day and just enjoying some pleasant recreation? Not a problem.
Maybe you need to find some information urgently, like a friend or family member going through a crisis and you want to find out everything you can about it. That’s fine.

I am concerned that you feel addicted to tuning out the world.
Are you going through a grief right now, or a crisis? Depression? Is the internet a way to avoid dealing with real life people and issues?
Then, that is a problem–you need to be dealing with the underlying issues.

Anything, even if it is intrinsically good, or neutral, can become toxic for you, if it becomes a way to chronically avoid dealing with your issues.

Again, I’m not talking about the occasional mental health break–but you seem to realize that vanishing into the internet isn’t really working for you anymore.

God bless and :pray:t2: For you!
 
People get tired, their brain needs a rest. Some people might read a book, some people might watch TV, some might surf the Net. It’s not a big deal to take some mental health time to do any of these things if the stuff you’re reading, watching or surfing isn’t inherently sinful. I used to watch TV or at least have it on a lot as did many other members of my family. In the last 20 years I gradually shifted to Internet because I have more control over content, it has more content, some of the content allows participation (you can write or post things) and it’s more interesting overall.

I’m aware sometimes I’m on the net because I’m tired, sometimes I’m ill, sometimes I’m under severe stress, and other times I’m just being too lazy which i do sometimes mention in Confession if it feels to the point of a sin, but I do not feel I’m committing a sin every time I take a break and surf some website that’s not about the Church or a saint. And if I feel cranky or headachey or like I’ve been online too long, break time.

There’s a tendency to demonize whatever the newest technology is, which right now is Internet and mobile phones, which to me is just silly unless like I said someone is actually committing a sin by using the technology for sinful activity, which could also have been done with old technologies like books, movies and land line telephones.
 
tom1 said:
It always felt so wrong to me in a way, for example even when I was a kid, and I got up from the couch after hours of watching TV and doing nothing, just being as lazy as one can be…

I’m not saying this is the case here, but I’m afraid I’m addicted to the pleasant feeling of “turning my surroundings off”, even when I’m doing things I consider good.
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Yes to this. If you’re able bodied, you should not be sitting on your rear end all day. It’s not good for your physical or mental health, especially if you are mostly healthy and young. Your body was built for physical work, not sitting around all day. When you don’t use your body for it’s intended purposes, it suffers.

I’m not saying you can’t have some screen time, but the younger and healthier you are, the less of it you should have.

That being said, I need to take my own advice and get moving.
 
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