Mortal sin and weed

[Thehumble]

Hi, i know that smoking weed is a sin. My friend smoked weed last night and didn’t find out until this morning that it is a mortal sin. Is he still fully culpable and guilty if he didn’t know that it was when he did it?

 

[Flopfoot]

No

The requirement of knowledge includes knowledge of the gravity of the sin

So even if it was a grave matter (which I totally doubt btw) then he didn’t do a mortal sin

(I’m not even sure it’s a sin at all)

 

[Tis_Bearself]

1. Probably not but 2. your friend needs to go discuss this with a priest in the confessional, not discuss it with strangers on an Internet forum.

 

[1Lord1Faith]

The way your post is framed goes to show how little Catholics actually understand Catholicism.

Also, smoking marijuana is not a sin in and of itself.

 

[surritter]

Not quite true – they are still different. Marijuana is smoked ONLY for the purpose of its effect (getting high). This makes it sinful. In other words, it is not merely a double-effect thing.

Alcohol can be consumed without that desired purpose; of course the drinking must stop before the drunken effect occurs.

 

[e_c]

Goodness.

1. Why are you so concerned if it wasn’t you?
2. Full knowledge does not mean “I know it’s on a big list of ‘OFFICIAL MORTAL SINS,’” it means the intellect is sufficiently engaged and is aware of what is actually being chosen as a means and intended as an end
3. Quantifying a quality is difficult (i.e. “how much is too much?”) but when the faculty of reason is impeded to the point of an inability to fulfill its basic functions, it removes the self-control by which we avoid doing evil things - and this recklessness is itself mortal sin… the mild affectation of an intoxicating substance, inhibiting a person beyond what is reasonable for his or her situation, is venial sin
4. The general consensus on weed is that it reaches the aforementioned states pretty quickly, the mild kind VERY quickly.
5. It is not a matter of intending a psychological effect which makes the ingestion or inhalation or injection of a “bad drug” sinful, as we also desire these good feelings from normal medicine, and normal food and drink, and exercise, and listening to music, or watching a film, etc. The manipulation of the emotions and one’s psychological state is NOT intrinsically evil. It is the inordinate inhibition of the use of reason which is sinful (together with any extra damaging effects that many “bad drugs” can have).

 

[Tis_Bearself]

Not quite true – they are still different. Marijuana is smoked ONLY for the purpose of its effect (getting high). This makes it sinful. In other words, it is not merely a double-effect thing.

Alcohol can be consumed without that desired purpose; of course the drinking must stop before the drunken effect occurs.

First of all, there are a number of medical purposes for some people to smoke marijuana, hence “medical marijuana”, so your statement that it’s “ONLY for the purpose of its effect” is not correct in all cases, although if someone is worrying about a sin it’s a good bet they weren’t smoking it to relieve their medical pain or symptoms.

Second of all, while there are also some medical purposes for consuming alcohol, please stop kidding yourself. Alcohol is consumed ONLY for the purpose of its effect in the vast majority of cases as well. You might argue that it’s used to enhance the taste of certain foods, but unless it is added as a cooking ingredient (like cooking sherry, bourbon sauce for meat etc.) if it is drunk with a meal it creates an effect of getting relaxed/ high.

Bottom line is that alcohol and marijuana do the same thing. One might argue that the marijuana is more sinful because it is illegal so you are also breaking the law when you take it, but don’t try to pretend that alcohol is drunk for some totally different purpose than pot is smoked for.

 

[surritter]

I agree that marijuana might have medical benefits, but that is clearly not what was being discussed. And if we wish to consider the medical benefits, then it should be packaged as a medical supplement (pill or similar form) and not smoked.

It’s rather ridiculous in today’s society that we’d have to do terrible things to our lungs to get a medical benefit. So we’d be talking about CBD oil, or THC or whatever – but packaged in normal medical manner.

And despite your disbelief, yes I stand by my statement that you can drink alcohol without desiring a drunken effect. That might shock you if you’re still in college, but there are actually mature people who can have a glass of wine before dinner, but not for the purpose of getting schnockered.

 

[surritter]

What is the purpose of smoking tobacco? That will yield an answer to your question as to whether it’s sinful.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

And despite your disbelief, yes I stand by my statement that you can drink alcohol without desiring a drunken effect. That might shock you if you’re still in college, but there are actually mature people who can have a glass of wine before dinner, but not for the purpose of getting schnockered.

Are you for real? I am old enough to have grandkids in college, for your information.
And you do not have to get drunk, wasted, sozzled, inebriated, etc to “feel the effects” of alcohol. You can have two drinks and be buzzed. Sinful? I think not. Plenty of responsible people drink that way regularly. However, they are still drinking FOR THE EFFECT. If they did not wish to feel the EFFECT of alcohol in making them relaxed, happy and calm, they would have had a glass of water, juice, or soda pop.

Similarly, there are plenty of people who take a couple of puffs from a marijuana joint to feel happy, relaxed and calm, without reaching the point of acting like the stoner guys in “Clerks” or “Fast Times at Ridgemont High”. And as for smoke in your lungs, do you really think putting alcohol into your liver, even if you don’t get drunk from it, is any better?

I do not smoke pot and have never smoked pot. I do like to have one or two beers, once or twice a month. But I am not kidding myself that there is a big difference between people who use either one. The only difference is that beer is more likely to be legal and socially acceptable and is much easier to get in USA.

 

[Renan]

“The use of drugs (stupefactivorum medicamentorum usus) inflicts very grave damage on human health and life. Their use, except on strictly therapeutic grounds, is a grave offense. Clandestine production of and trafficking in drugs are scandalous practices. They constitute direct co-operation in evil, since they encourage people to practices gravely contrary to the moral law” (CCC 2291).

“Stupefactivorum medicamentorum” includes weed. So, I guess there’s nothing else to say.