Talking about people involved in your past....gossip?

[E00]

I’m confused about two things. One being if you’re discussing someone involving your own past is this still gossip and the other being is it still a mortal sin if you gossiped without realising that you were about to gossip? I know that last one sounds a bit confusing but let me explain…

I ran into someone that I used to know up the street that I hadn’t seen in years. When I got home I told my husband about it, more just because it was on my mind then anything. I then explained why I lost contact with that person, a situation that involved me and had made me uncomfortable at the time it occurred. The reasons that I lost contact with this person weren’t very kind to his reputation and could have been damaging to how my husband thinks of him. My husband made a comment about him that was slightly insulting. I didn’t disagree but I did state that he was a good person it was just something weird that happened a long time ago. I honestly didn’t think that this could be gossip until after I’d told him, it had been more about explaining my past with someone. As I was aware that gossip can be a mortal sin before I engaged in conversation, even if I didn’t premeditate that I could be about to sin, is it still mortal?

 

[PetraG]

A mortal sin requires grave matter, awareness of gravity and the deliberate choice to commit the action in spite of how wrong it is.

I don’t think gossip exchanged between spouses rises to a grave offense very often. Your confessor can explain the kind of offenses against the truth that qualify as mortal sins.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

It’s not gossip to tell your spouse, or anyone else who keeps stories “in the family”, about past experiences you personally had with another person. That’s what spouses, and moms and dads and sisters and trustworthy best friends, are for.

Gossip is repeating a story about someone just for juicy value or to harm their reputation. It’s not about appropriately sharing your own personal experiences.

We always had a rule that family discussions stay in the family. We said many things among family that I would not say to acquaintances or in public, and that was okay.