Sins I thought were venial but were actually mortal

[YehoiakhinEx232]

I just realized I have made a terrible mistake and sins I have been doing in the past that I thought were venial are now, I’m almost completely certain are morta,l or are at least on the borderline of being mortal. I now have several questions about this issue:

First and foremost, am I still in state grace because I didn’t know that the sins were mortal? Does ignorance apply here even though I knew was sinning just not necessarily mortally?

Secondly, in the past I had confessed these sins under the category of venial sins and have forgotten the number of times I’ve had done it. I remember the number of times I’ve done it since the last time I’ve confessed my venial sins. Does confessing a mortal sin under the category of a venial sin count on the condition that you didn’t know it was a mortal sin?

Thirdly, I won’t go into detail but, the sin in question has to do with lying. I am almost certain that the sin is mortal but, how far can one go in saying something false to protect a good without it becoming a form of consequentialism?

Glory to God!
And
Hail Mary!

 

[MtnDwellar]

Sins against the eighth commandment can be grave matter. Often times people don’t even realize they are sinning because the sin itself darkens the intellect. A person’s culpability can be reduced because of lack of knowledge. They have to consider whether or not they are guilty of the sin of negligence.

God forgives our sins in confession. They are forgiven even if we don’t realize the seriousness.

 

[RPRPsych]

I just realized I have made a terrible mistake and sins I have been doing in the past that I thought were venial are now, I’m almost completely certain are morta,l or are at least on the borderline of being mortal. I now have several questions about this issue:

First and foremost, am I still in state grace because I didn’t know that the sins were mortal? Does ignorance apply here even though I knew was sinning just not necessarily mortally?

Secondly, in the past I had confessed these sins under the category of venial sins and have forgotten the number of times I’ve had done it. I remember the number of times I’ve done it since the last time I’ve confessed my venial sins. Does confessing a mortal sin under the category of a venial sin count on the condition that you didn’t know it was a mortal sin?

Thirdly, I won’t go into detail but, the sin in question has to do with lying. I am almost certain that the sin is mortal but, how far can one go in saying something false to protect a good without it becoming a form of consequentialism?

Glory to God!
And
Hail Mary!

Ignorance of the severity of an offence can certainly diminish the culpability of said offence and even the penalty associated with it. If you’ve already confessed these sins, then the matter is more or less over and done with. If you haven’t yet, then as Fr. Z would say, “Go to Confession!”

As for the specific details of lying “for a greater good”, that should be discussed with a confessor or a priest.

 

[1Lord1Faith]

I just realized I have made a terrible mistake and sins I have been doing in the past that I thought were venial are now, I’m almost completely certain are morta,l or are at least on the borderline of being mortal. I now have several questions about this issue:

First and foremost, am I still in state grace because I didn’t know that the sins were mortal? Does ignorance apply here even though I knew was sinning just not necessarily mortally?

Secondly, in the past I had confessed these sins under the category of venial sins and have forgotten the number of times I’ve had done it. I remember the number of times I’ve done it since the last time I’ve confessed my venial sins. Does confessing a mortal sin under the category of a venial sin count on the condition that you didn’t know it was a mortal sin?

Thirdly, I won’t go into detail but, the sin in question has to do with lying. I am almost certain that the sin is mortal but, how far can one go in saying something false to protect a good without it becoming a form of consequentialism?

Glory to God!
And
Hail Mary!

Well, you can’t accidentally commit a mortal sin. Furthermore, the phrase that is said in Mass, “Lord, you came to heal the contrite of heart.” - this is what you want to have in mind when your thinking about, “am I forgiven?” - not necessarily the procedures of the confessional.

Now, about what you’ve stated “thirdly”, the proper way to make that statement is, “I am almost certain that the sin is grave, or grevious.” Regarding saying something false…it depends on the context, intent, and subject matter as to whether or not it’s a material lie or a formal lie. Don’t look at it in terms of consequentialism, it just sends your thinking down the wrong path.

 

[thistle]

I just realized I have made a terrible mistake and sins I have been doing in the past that I thought were venial are now, I’m almost completely certain are morta,l or are at least on the borderline of being mortal. I now have several questions about this issue:

First and foremost, am I still in state grace because I didn’t know that the sins were mortal? Does ignorance apply here even though I knew was sinning just not necessarily mortally?

Secondly, in the past I had confessed these sins under the category of venial sins and have forgotten the number of times I’ve had done it. I remember the number of times I’ve done it since the last time I’ve confessed my venial sins. Does confessing a mortal sin under the category of a venial sin count on the condition that you didn’t know it was a mortal sin?

Thirdly, I won’t go into detail but, the sin in question has to do with lying. I am almost certain that the sin is mortal but, how far can one go in saying something false to protect a good without it becoming a form of consequentialism?

Glory to God!
And
Hail Mary!

The simple answer is to go to Confession.

 

[exnihilo]

Well, you can’t accidentally commit a mortal sin. Furthermore, the phrase that is said in Mass, “Lord, you came to heal the contrite of heart.” - this is what you want to have in mind when your thinking about, “am I forgiven?” - not necessarily the procedures of the confessional.

Now, about what you’ve stated “thirdly”, the proper way to make that statement is, “I am almost certain that the sin is grave, or grevious.” Regarding saying something false…it depends on the context, intent, and subject matter as to whether or not it’s a material lie or a formal lie. Don’t look at it in terms of consequentialism, it just sends your thinking down the wrong path.

Yes. If the sins were grave matter but you didn’t know it was grave matter then it wasn’t a mortal sin. You have to have knowledge the act is grave matter for it to be a mortal sin. Learning this later doesn’t change that. You can of course confess past sins in confession. This is not recommended for people who are scrupulous. As always if you have questions about confessions the best place to resolve them is in talking to a priest or in the confessional itself.