Priest said 10 days between confessions should be my minimum, BUT

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BananaManSuite

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If you do something thinking it’s a mortal sin, even if it’s not…

Does it become a mortal sin to you?

I am asking here because a priest told me I shouldn’t come back to confession until 10 days have passed due to my scruples. It hasn’t been a full 10 days yet, so I’m debating whether or not to break his command and go tomorrow or not.

So what happened was this: I read a guide to examining conscience. It had a typo (apparently fixed in later versions) that said it’s a mortal sin to “violate a conscience without a good reason.”

Actually what it was supposed to say was “violation of a CONFIDENCE without a good reason.”

So, what happened today was a slight spat with my wife. I justified at the time by remembering that fighting over slight things was a venial sin. But at the same time I felt bad about it and wondered "is this the mortal sin of “violating my conscience without a good reason”?
Anyway, I kept the argument going a bit more.

Now it turns out my understanding was based on a typo. Violating your conscience may be bad but it isn’t always a mortal sin.

But did I mortally sin in that moment, when I continued to argue despite wondering if this counted as “violating my conscience without a good reason”?

I suppose at the moment I justified it by saying to myself “I have OCD, my conscience thinks everything is bad, this rule probably doesn’t apply to those with scrupulous consciences. Besides, “fighting over slight matters” is a venial sin, this must be a venial sin.” That was my justification to myself at the time.
 
He actually doesn’t know me that well. We have many priests hearing confessions at my church.
 
Follow your priest’s advice, and go to him if possible with questions on this, or another priest if necessary. I understand some parishes have many priests so it’s difficult to always get the same one. Asking these questions on the internet will not be helpful for your scruples.
 
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BananaManSuite said:
I suppose at the moment I justified it by saying to myself “I have OCD, my conscience thinks everything is bad, this rule probably doesn’t apply to those with scrupulous consciences. Besides, “fighting over slight matters” is a venial sin, this must be a venial sin.” That was my justification to myself at the time.
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I often recognize myself committing sins which are venial, but still feeling like they are mortal. I try to tell my mind this; that it isn´t grave enough to be mortal etc. (mortal sins are sins that are very much contrary to God´s teachings, and sins that we can´t do without, more or less; trying drag ourselves out of the love God gives us). I remember rushing to Confession for what I now see where mainly venial sins. In your case, you should probably just listen to your priest´s advice.

I suspect myself for having scruples as well - but haven´t really decided to approach it already, due to personal matter.
 
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No, there is no ‘but’ here. Listen to your Priest. If you don’t, you will never manage to get on top of your scruples.
 
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Please speak to your priest. As we have told you before on your similar past threads, these types of threads can be very harmful to the person with scruples. Therefore, you should not start them and we should not be answering your questions, which are best handled by your priest, in person.
 
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Being a Catholic is easier said than done. There are always struggles. Do the work of subjugating your pride and anxiety and do what your priest has told you to do. You might want to consider a period of not posting on CAF if it reduces your scrupulosity. Posting and checking for and processing all the answers only “feeds the beast”, as it were.

Good luck…praying for you.
 
BananaManSuite said:
Easier said than done, my friend…
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Of course. Scrupulosity is a difficult compulsion. Turning you away in these threads is blunt, but it’s honestly the best thing we can do for your scruples. Indulging questions like these with answers, and it’s tempting to try to do so, will only feed the compulsion you feel.
 
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You asked whether merely “thinking” something is a mortal sin makes it a mortal sin.
The answer is NO.
The Catholic Church does NOT rely on emotions, feelings, or uninformed thinking. You need to continue to work to form a proper conscience, and in order to do so you need to rely on your priest to direct you. Be humble enough to realize you have deficiencies in your thinking and obey your priest.
 
BananaManSuite said:
I am asking here because a priest told me I shouldn’t come back to confession until 10 days have passed due to my scruples
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Follow your spiritual direction received from your priest.

Do not seek out counter advice here.

Scruples need the assistance of your priest, not random people on the internet.
 
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