Seeing nudity in comic I regularly read - a mortal sin?

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This almost reads like a revised version of the Catechism of the Catholic Church! Your intentions are no doubt all good but be careful of out-Poping the Pope. I only hope the OP is not already scrupulous.
 
Yes, Archbishop Sheen knew what was going on. This infiltration was happening in the 1950s and 1960s and would get worse as time went on. Thank you for your post.
 
No, I am simply following the theology of St. Alphonsus Logouri, Doctor of the Church, Patron Saint of Theologians and Confessors.

Why follow St. Alphonsus? Because the Sacred Penitentiary, now the Holy See, gave St. Alphonsus more affirmation than any other Saint, and declared in Denzinger 2725 that his opinions could be quietly accepted, without weighing the sources or reasons on the various sides, just because St. Alphonsus held them.

Furthermore, every decree on sexual morality in the 1800s was based on St. Alphonsus’s moral theology, and Jean Pierre Gury’s book Compendium Theologiae Moralis. J. P. Gury was an ardent follower of St. Alphonsus, and I am merely giving his exact advice above. I recommend you read him!

To repeat, St. Alphonsus’s theology was declared safe, by the Magisterium on July 5, 1831 in Denzinger 2725. The Holy See could not find any errors in his works, and decreed this!

This is why you should go to St. Alphonsus!
 
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Fair enough. You are obviously an expert on St. Alphonsus. Nonetheless, I must point out that some of what you stated sounds rather extreme to me, such as the possibility (I realize you highlighted that word) that G-d may not forgive a preponderance of mortal sins (since when can this be true if one is repentant?) and the very large number of sins that cannot be counted in Confession (doesn’t the confessional make allowance for that by having the penitent say something to the effect of “and any other sins I may have forgotten”?). For all his authority as a renowned Doctor of the Church including even the acceptance of his ideas by the Magisterium, St. Alphonsus was still a human being and therefore not exempt from error. But I will on your suggestion look into his writings.
 
alphonsus1 said:
  1. It is possible (not guaranteed), that there is a number of sins beyond which God pardons no more. If this is true, then precisely those sins that rack up so many mortal sins that you cannot count the number that you committed, are the worst of the worst. If true (big if), then this implies that the sin of bad thoughts is the worst sin overall (worse than pornography), for the vast majority of men between the ages of 15-40.
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Bolded part is completely false and asinine to even consider. God’s love and forgiveness is eternal. There is and never has been (following the crucifixion) any limit to how much sin he will forgive.
 
I have found St. Alphonsus’s writings, and you can get his sermons online for free. Here are some sources.

First watch this sermon on impurity:


Here is St. Alphonsus’s sermon on bad thoughts.
http://www.catholicapologetics.info/scripture/newtestament/liguori.pdf#page199

This book above of sermons is a must read of St. Alphonsus (avoid the ones on Hell if you’re squeamish). Go to his sermon: “On Bad Thoughts” first. Note: St. Alphonsus’s advice, in the words of St. Thomas, just wow at that duo, is to avoid even looking at females. This is not possible to do today, since we must take into account changing circumstances today than in the past (what was possible to do for seminarians in 1700 where you never saw a woman’s ankles, is not possible to do today). However, it is still possible to take many, many precautions from J. P. Gury’s works and still get your everyday obligations done/ not be paralyzed in fear. It is still possible at a bare minimum to avoid nudity like the plague/ practice custody of your eyes at all times, the suggestions I made above.

Please read this blog post in full. It has a translated version of J. P. Gury’s works. He is cited, with St. Alphonsus’s work, in the bibliography of the Holy See’s decrees in the 1800s/ early 1900s on sexual morality in Denz 2758, 2795, 3634, and 3638.

 
I happen to think this is not a sin, based on what you have told us. However, I notice that most of those who think it is sinful, you dismiss or insult as “condescending” or “asinine.” What is that about? Of course you may disagree, but they are giving you advice and trying to help.
 
St. Alphonsus’s rebuttal.

God is infinitely merciful, yes. But he is also infinitely just. And part of justice involves just punishment. His mercy moderates his justice, yes, but his justice also moderates his mercy. And we do not know how these two infinites interact together. It is possible the vast majority of people are saved (“mercy wins out”), but the reverse is also possible (“justice wins out”). God is 100 percent fair, but God cannot pardon the determination to commit sin. If we choose to go on offending and abusing his mercy, then we should be very fearful.

Read this blog to see the astounding number of Doctors of the Church (there are only 36 of them and they’re advertised to be “safe”) who thought that the vast majority of people went to Hell. So it is entirely possible (the Magisterium has not clarified on this). St. Augustine thought this, St. Gregory the Great thought this, St. Jerome thought this, St. John Chrysostom thought this, St. Thomas thought this, St. Bede the Venerable thought this, St. Alphonsus thought this. So many Doctors of the Church thought that the vast majority of people went to Hell. Should this not be considered as at least a “possibility” in the absence of Magisterial clarification?
http://saintsquotes.net/selection - fewness.html
  1. We have a relationship with God. Can you mortal sin against your wife (adultery) and be forgiven an infinite number of times? NO! So too, you cannot mortal sin against God as often and long as you please and expect eternal glory.
  2. Most important. God’s Mercy is infinite, but, if St. Alphonsus is correct, and he very well could be with so much Magisterial affirmation on his side, then perhaps God only pardons a finite number of times. That is, his “acts of mercy” are finite!
 
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I think you’re best off getting the advice of a knowledgeable priest that you trust. Art is subjective so there’s going to be a wide variety of opinions from people on it. You probably won’t get a consensus on here.

It is unfortunate that pornography has caused people to have such an unhealthy view of the body. It causes people to either sexualize nudity or to be terrified of seeing it. There is no balance in that at all.
 
alphonsus1 said:
Note: St. Alphonsus’s advice, in the words of St. Thomas, just wow at that duo, is to avoid even looking at females. This is not possible to do today
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  1. Literally never laying eyes on humans of the female gender would be impossible at any stage of human history, not just today.
  2. As far as not even looking at the face of a woman you find attractive, and not looking at women in general…these suggestions are incompatible with the life of a normal, virtuous man looking for a wife with whom to start a family, and really, anyone who isn’t a celibate priest living in a monastery…
 
Benjinho said:
  • Literally never laying eyes on humans of the female gender would be impossible at any stage of human history, not just today.
  • As far as not even looking at the face of a woman you find attractive, and not looking at women in general…these suggestions are incompatible with the life of a normal, virtuous man looking for a wife with whom to start a family, and really, anyone who isn’t a celibate priest living in a monastery…
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Almost as though there’s more to Catholicism than just “whatever St. Alphonsus thought/Denzinger”…
 
meltzerboy2 said:
I happen to think this is not a sin, based on what you have told us. However, I notice that most of those who think it is sinful, you dismiss or insult as “condescending” or “asinine.” What is that about? Of course you may disagree, but they are giving you advice and trying to help.
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I dislike the fearmongering and misinterpretation of God’s infinite mercy. I don’t see the difference between infinite mercy and infinite acts of mercy, for instance, because mercy itself is an act.

What I’ve learned from my catechesis is that Justice/Hell is for people who choose not to repent/reject God, rather than people who don’t want to torture themselves with constant scrupulosity their entire lives…
 
Of course Catholics should pay some heed to the common views of so many Doctors of the Church. At the same time, I think your last bolded statement is both confusing and slightly heretical, if such a thing is possible. What is the distinction drawn between “G-d’s mercy is infinite” and “G-d’s ‘acts of mercy’ may not be infinite”? And to suggest that G-d’s acts of mercy are possibly NOT infinite does not sound kosher to me.
 
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Why would you want to read a comic that has nudity in it?😱
 
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I know I will not make many friends by saying this, but I don’t understand why the OP would even want to read a comic book!
 
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The distinction is that God can very well pardon any sin regardless of how bad the sin is. But He will not pardon an infinite number of times.

Jesus Christ cursed a fig tree the first time it did not bear fruit!!!

Heretical? Please read St. Alphonsus on this:

“But the Apostle tells us that God will not be mocked. ‘Be not deceived; God is not mocked.’ (Gal. vi. 7.) It would be a mockery of God to insult him as often and as much as you pleased, and afterwards to expect eternal glory.”

Is St. Alphonsus really heretical?

Read St. Alphonsus’s sermon:
SERMON XV. FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT. - ON THE NUMBER OF SINS BEYOND WHICH GOD PARDONS NO MORE.
 
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I agree with this, during my studies in art, I was required to study art history (both religious and non-religious) as well as draw nude studies, both male and female. In the time of studying human anatomy through drawing, I was never under temptations of the flesh. Sure it was awkward, but I was able to understand the natural movement of the Lord’s design. This actually helped me not see nudity as always evil, I will not deny, however, that society has placed the human figure as an icon for sexuality. I do not agree with sexualizing the human body as the secular world does. If anything, I agree to there being limits on nudity in art, if that art is made purely for the sake of lust or provoking the viewer to think about the body as an object of pleasure, that is where I draw my line.
Of course, I would not recommend anyone that deals with the near occasion of sexual sin to expose themselves to that, even if the image is non-sexual.
 
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