Sin....

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Truth_Faith13

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I have been somewhat surprised by some posts that have suggested that it is ok to commit a sin because you can always go to confession afterwards and those who assume it is ok to commit a sin as a backlash against another sin…

Anyhow this got me thinking…is there any sin (mortal or venial - I think there the terms) which are not forgivable? And what would happen if a person committed a mortal or venial sin and died without going to confession…would they go to heaven, hell or purgatory?
 
No one is saying that sin is okay as Jesus tells the woman to ‘go and sin no more’. But as we are all human and are free to make our own choices, it is the human in us that makes the wrong choices and so we are all in need of forgiveness, for the little things we do wrong to the big ones. God will set us free of them. And as scripture says, we must forgive 7 times 70 times. Or something like that, meaning we will probably keep making the same mistakes. 🙂

The scripture says that sins against the Holy Spirit are unforgivable which would be blasphemy. Jesus was accused of blasphemy in the scriptures when he was healing people. I would figure that’s like practicing magic, or dark arts. I can’t imagine though that that can’t also be forgiven through confession and conversion.

And this passage speaks to mortal sin being of a more serious nature than simple venial sins. They should be confessed or the mortal sin might separate us from God for eternity as I understand it.

1 John 5:16-17 If you see your brother or sister committing what is not a mortal sin, you will ask, and God will give life to such a one—to those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin that is mortal; I do not say that you should pray about that. 17 All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin that is not mortal.

James 5:16 Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.

God is the great forgiver. Gods mercy is needed because we are all sinners (trying to be saints!) Jesus forgave St. Paul who was a murder of Christians but repentance is necessary in order to convert ones life back to God.

Feel free to clarify If someone knows more about this. I definitely rely on Gods mercy and go to confession regularly for the graces of God it gives. .
 
It is both a presumption and a sacrilege to commit a sin with the intention “I will just go confess it later”. If we ever do that, we need to confess the sin of sinning with the intention to escape the eternal consequences by confessing later: that is, we need to confess the sacrilege we committed against the mercy of God and the Sacrament of Penance. . We had also better not sin in retaliation with the thought that God did not or will not know our hearts in the matter. When we confess, we need to confess the whole wrong, not the technical violation. The court of Heaven is real; it is not a matter of technicalities, something human deceit can skirt as it does in a human court with its limited judges. If we sin defiantly, we have to confess the defiance, too.

We ought to remember, of course, that confession does not remove the temporal consequences. IOW, if you break the window and confess you are forgiven, but the window is not magically restored. It is the relationship that is restored, not the window. Someone has to deal with fixing the window. Confession presumes that the contrite will do what they can towards the end of mending temporal effects. If you break a window and apologize, your contrition doesn’t count for much if you don’t want to do anything to help mend the damage you did by your carelessness or harmful intentions. If you break a window on purpose with the thought that Grandma will forgive you and you won’t have to take care of the broken glass, well–shame on you! Remember that the difference between Grandma and God is that God knows very well what your interior motivations are and were. Do not mock the Almighty with a purposefully insincere confession.
 
EasterJoy said:
It is both a presumption and a sacrilege to commit a sin with the intention “I will just go confess it later”. If we ever do that, we need to confess the sin of sinning with the intention to escape the eternal consequences by confessing later: that is, we need to confess the sacrilege we committed against the mercy of God and the Sacrament of Penance. We had also better not sin in retaliation with the thought that God did not or will not know our hearts in the matter. When we confess, we need to confess the whole wrong, not the technical violation. The court of Heaven is real; it is not a matter of technicalities, something human deceit can skirt as it does in a human court with its limited judges. If we sin defiantly, we have to confess the defiance, too.

We ought to remember, of course, that confession does not remove the temporal consequences. IOW, if you break the window and confess you are forgiven, but the window is not magically restored. It is the relationship that is restored, not the window. Someone has to deal with fixing the window. Confession presumes that the contrite will do what they can towards the end of mending temporal effects. If you break a window and apologize, your contrition doesn’t count for much if you don’t want to do anything to help mend the damage you did by your carelessness or harmful intentions. If you break a window on purpose with the thought that Grandma will forgive you and you won’t have to take care of the broken glass, well–shame on you! Remember that the difference between Grandma and God is that God knows very well what your interior motivations are and were. Do not mock the Almighty with a purposefully insincere confession.
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No, it is never OK to sin. To use confession as an excuse is to add another sin.

The closest thing to an unforgivable sin is despair. Not because the sin itself cannot be forgiven, but because, to the extent that the sinner persists in it, he refuses to be forgiven, thinking it impossible or ultimately pointless. See St. Thomas on despair.

If a person dies in mortal sin, he will go to hell.
 
felmus said:
If a person dies in mortal sin, he will go to hell.
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To clarify: A sin of both mortal degree of seriousness and full culpability. It is not just the seriousness of the sin, but the seriousness of the culpability.

The Church also teaches, for instance that (as the Catechism puts it) “We should not despair of the eternal salvation of persons who have taken their own lives. By ways known to him alone, God can provide the opportunity for salutary repentance. the Church prays for persons who have taken their own lives.” (CCC 2283).

Likewise, we cannot know whether a particular person who seems to have died in unrepented mortal sin will actually go to Hell because in every case “by ways known to him alone, God can provide the opportunity for salutary repentance”. It is our duty to warn those in sin to repent while they have the opportunity, however, because additional opportunities prior to the final particular judgment of each of us cannot be presumed. May we all have the sense and the opportunity to seek final repentance and absolution from all of our sins prior to death.
 
Truth_Faith13 said:
I have been somewhat surprised by some posts that have suggested that it is ok to commit a sin because you can always go to confession afterwards and those who assume it is ok to commit a sin as a backlash against another sin…

Anyhow this got me thinking….is there any sin (mortal or venial - I think there the terms) which are not forgivable? And what would happen if a person committed a mortal or venial sin and died without going to confession…would they go to heaven, hell or purgatory?/QUOTE]

Yes, I believe Christ said there was one sin which was not forgivable.

Mark 3: 29
Whoever blasphemes against the holy Spirit: this sin is called an everlasting sin because it attributes to Satan, who is the power of evil, what is actually the work of the holy Spirit, namely, victory over the demons.

As to commiting an unconfessed venial sin before death, one would go to purgatory, normally. If one had an unconfessed mortal sin, he would go to purgatory or hell. All this also depends on God’s mercy, if the person repented before death, etc., though. So, there are a number of variables.

We can’t say for sure, since we don’t make that determination, only God does.
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Truth_Faith13 said:
I have been somewhat surprised by some posts that have suggested that it is ok to commit a sin because you can always go to confession afterwards and those who assume it is ok to commit a sin as a backlash against another sin…
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I haven’t noticed this at all. 🤷
 
It’s only been a couple of times…it just got me thinking about sin, it was more the question about an unforgivable sin and whether it existed and If you died before being able to confess.

Thank you for all of your answers.
 
The attitude you are describing is based on a common misconception: that is, that it is ever “OK” to presume on the mercy of God when deciding whether or not to follow God’s will. Of course that compounds the error.

The unforgiveable sin is an impermeability to forgiveness; that is, hard-heartedness. There is no example of a person coming forward in honest contrition to be forgiven who was not forgiven. The people in Holy Scriptures who are depicted as getting the rude awakening are the ones who presume themselves to be beyond reproach, beyond needing forgiveness. Even in the sheep and goats depiction of the Final Judgment, those who were condemned protested at the Lord’s unfavorable depiction of them: “Lord, when did we ever…”
 
It is important sometimes to remind people that they (and others), when brought to true remorse, can be forgiven. People can be hard on themselves and on others who have hurt them. Reminding someone that true contrition and sacramental confession can help right a wrong isn’t necessarily encouraging presumption.

However, as others have said, assuming we are OK because we “can always go to confession” is very wrong!
 
Exactly. The contrite person should* never *fear approaching the Throne of God for mercy, no matter what he or she has done.

*The LORD is close to the brokenhearted, saves those whose spirit is crushed. *Ps. 34:19

*But if the wicked man turns away from all the sins he committed, if he keeps all my statutes and does what is right and just, he shall surely live, he shall not die. None of the crimes he committed shall be remembered against him; he shall live because of the virtue he has practiced. Do I indeed derive any pleasure from the death of the wicked? says the Lord GOD. Do I not rather rejoice when he turns from his evil way that he may live? And if the virtuous man turns from the path of virtue to do evil, the same kind of abominable things that the wicked man does, can he do this and still live? None of his virtuous deeds shall be remembered, because he has broken faith and committed sin; because of this, he shall die. You say, “The LORD’S way is not fair!” Hear now, house of Israel: Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair? When a virtuous man turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies, it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die. But if a wicked man, turning from the wickedness he has committed, does what is right and just, he shall preserve his life; since he has turned away from all the sins which he committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.

And yet the house of Israel says, “The LORD’S way is not fair!” Is it my way that is not fair, house of Israel, or rather, is it not that your ways are not fair? Therefore I will judge you, house of Israel, each one according to his ways, says the Lord GOD. Turn and be converted from all your crimes, that they may be no cause of guilt for you. Cast away from you all the crimes you have committed, and make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. Why should you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies, says the Lord GOD. Return and live!* Ez. 18:21-32
 
on_the_hill said:
I haven’t noticed this at all. 🤷
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I noticed it on a recent thread about sperm banking. It does happen here, unfortunately. It’s totally unacceptable and sadly, will turn off people that are seeking out the faith. I would just encourage the OP and affirm that such actions are not in line with the teachings of the church and faithful Catholics do not believe this way.
 
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