Stealing from a neighbors tree

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Average_Joe17

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My father works as a landscaper and I volunteer to go with him. My dad’s clients have orange trees and/or tangerine trees. His client’s are perfectly fine with us taking a few. However, today, as we finished a client’s house, my dad said he was gonna get a grapefruit from the neighbors tree. He told me if i wanted, I could get one. I know i shouldn’t have done it because they were his property, but i still grabbed one. And now i regret grabbing it , if i could i would just leave it at the proper owner’s doorstep but i can’t until 2 weeks time. Did i commit a mortal sin? What can i do to offer reparations?
 
taking a piece of fruit generally is not something that would be considered grave matter. more likely, venial sin

now that being said, no, you probably shouldn’t have done it because you did not have the neighbor’s permission, that would still be wrong in this case.

just mention it in your next confession
 
Was the grapefruit hanging on a limb beyond that neighbor’s yard?

I ask as I have a large pomogranate tree that’s partially over the fence. It’s understood that fruit over the fence is fair game, but not those within my yard.
 
Actually yes. The grapefruit tree is very big and out of control that 1/2 of tree hangs over to my dad’s client’s home.
 
Definitely not a mortal sin. As a grapefruit is only worth a couple dollars at most, I don’t know if you’d need to pay reparations. Just mention it in your next confession, and if you see the neighbor, mention it to them and maybe give them a few bucks.
 
Would i be able to receive the blessed sacrament tomorrow since I was not able to go to confession today? The next available confessions, at earliest, is Monday
 
The theft of a single grapefruit is as Augustine8 said only of small value, therefore not grave matter. And the loss the owner of the tree incurred as a result of your grabbing one grapefruit would be only very little based on the cost of buying a single one at the store - about $4-5 each?

I wouldn’t consider the theft of $5 to be a serious or grave theft. Would you?

So if it’s not grave matter you can receive communion, but also mention it at your next confession.

If you can’t repay the owner of the tree, perhaps you could put $5 in the poor box at Church?
 
Maybe if the grapefruit was a homeless man’s food, you would have some more grave matter on your hands. It seems like you may be a little bit scrupulous, if you are not, sorry for assuming, but I would talk with your priest about this
 
Maybe you could see your pastor before mass and he could help alleviate your worries.
 
I have never seen a single grapefruit valued at $4 to $5. Maybe a watermelon, but not a grapefruit. The Catechism states, as I recall, that a small theft which is virtually inconsequential to the owner is not actually a sin.

It would be better to take the lesson from this incident as learning about all sin. That minor theft damages you and your conscience. It seems that some people take anything that they can get away with and they take the chance to do so. I wanted to buy a camera in a popular well-known chain store. The inventory said there were 4 in stock, but there were none to be found of the $285 cameras. They were gone. Most retail theft is internal, by the employees. It is a bad habit to get into.

The essence of being honest, being a good Catholic, is to do what is right at all times – as they say, when '“nobody” is watching. God is all knowing. As St Paul advises, “stop sinning.” Hold on to your faith – God is not mocked.
 
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There may be some variation from one state to another, but usually the part of a neighbor’s tree hanging over your yard is treated as your property. So you can harvest the fruit, you can prune it as you wish. On the flip side, you have to rake the leaves, and you are responsible if that branch falls on your house, or injures a passerby.

So if that applies, you didn’t sin at all. But it should be cause for reflection that you were prepared to sin.
 
This wasn’t the situation here which the OP was asking about, so that circumstance doesn’t apply and therefore not required to be considered in my reply to the opening poster.
 
Perhaps the principle illustrated by God’s instructions to Moses in Deuteronomy chapter 23 is relevant here?

When you go through your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you wish, until you are satisfied, but do not put them in your basket. When you go through your neighbor’s grain field, you may pluck some of the ears with your hand, but do not put a sickle to your neighbor’s grain. (Deut. 23:25-26 NAB)
 
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Average_Joe17 said:
He told me if i wanted, I could get one. I know i shouldn’t have done it because they were his property, but i still grabbed one. And now i regret grabbing it , if i could i would just leave it at the proper owner’s doorstep but i can’t until 2 weeks time. Did i commit a mortal sin? What can i do to offer reparations?
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Did you murder the property owner for it?
 
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