I’ve done a lot of research on gluttony, and when it’s venial and when it’s mortal; I’ve also asked in the confessional, and talked to other Catholics about it. But I’m still not sure.
I have a big sweet tooth, and it’s very difficult for me to practice temperance when there’s a plate of chocolate and cookies on the table. I want so much to be able to avoid not only mortal sin, but venial sin as well, and even further than that, to deny my sweet tooth altogether. But I just end up eating to the point where I’m pretty sure I won’t get really sick, but I know I’ll be feeling somewhat off. Like tonight, with all the Christmas treats–I ended up feeling kind of gross later. I hate it when I do this, and I’m always disgusted with myself. But I’m really not sure whether this, in a normal case, would be mortal.
I also have a family history of heart disease, and I’m wondering if, with this qualification, eating all that junk food today would have been grave matter.
gluttony is actually only rarely a mortal sin, but what makes it a sin altogether, either mortal or venial, is the importance we put on the eating or drinking,
it is an inordinate desire for the pleasure connected with food or drink, but it is also gluttony when we neglect our bodies need for food,
although it’s not just how much you eat or how little you eat, but the intention connected with it, or the importance put on it,
for example, the sins of gluttony that would fall under “mortal sin” would be things like, drinking to the point of drunkenness, or stuffing yourself so much and then forcing yourself to vomit, or making food your god, meaning those who live for food(live to eat instead of eating to live) and are willing to offend God just to satisfy their cravings, or willing to deprive their families for it, or hurt themselves or others for it.
but those are extreme cases, there is a degree of breathing room in there, and the key is really temperance, which is the virtue you want to practice if you want to overcome this vice,
but as for venial sins, they would be things like, being to picky or fussy with your food, or wanting it to be just right, or refusing to eat because there’s something in the food you don’t like, or only eating particular things, being impatient with your food(wanting it right now or right when you want it), or being so impatient that you start eating before everyone sits down to eat, or making your own food because you don’t like what’s being made for dinner, and even eating to hastily, which can actually be the cause of weight gain(as my doctor has told me)
and as far as eating things that may be bad for your health, that is something to talk over with your priest and doctor, because yes, it would be a sin to eat something that would hurt you.
well those are just examples, and again, what makes it sinful is the importance you put on the food, so it’s ok to be a little picky, or have things your way as long as it’s not an inconvenience to others, and it’s ok to eat more than you need once in awhile, like just a snack or on special occasions, or if someone offers you the food, in which case it would be more uncharitable to refuse, because again, it’s not the eating itself, but the importance put on it,
remember that eating is a good thing, our bodies need food, and so when we feed ourselves with the right intentions, then God is pleased,
the reason we put such an importance on food in the first place is, simply because we feel a need to satisfy ourselves, to fill ourselves with something, which of course is a result of the lack of God in our hearts and our lives,
there is a space to fill in our hearts, and although that space is meant for God, we tend to fill it with other things, such as money, drugs, drinking, food, games, tv, etc. etc.
but of course as you well know, those things are temporary and continuously leave our hearts, and so we are left feeling empty again, and seek to fill ourselves again and again,
but when we fill ourselves with God, then we are satisfied, and we no longer feel the need to search for what may fill us, because we have that which fills us completely…
but the remedy to gluttony is, as i said, temperance, and that is what you need to learn about and practice, and then of course you must pray for and try to love God more and more, and make room for Him in your heart by detaching yourself from these other inordinate attachments and desires,
some other remedies also are things like mortification, fasting, meditating on the passion of Jesus, and of course prayer and receiving of the sacraments.
also, try meditating on what it means to feed the body, and what it means to feed the soul, think of how you feel when you become hungry or when you see some food you want very much, and then think of how your soul is starving, and what things you should desire even more for your soul than those delicious foods you desire for your body,
or in others words, when you are faced with those cravings or inordinate desires for food, turn them into something you can meditate on, such as “this is what my body craves, what does my souls crave?”
you can turn almost any physical matter into a reference of the spiritual, in which case, as long as you are not sinning, you can turn those bad or inordinate things, into good and productive things.
well, if you have any other questions, please ask, and check out these very helpful sites, for this and many other things -
audiosancto.org/
alabamacatholicresources.com/index.html
www.naturalnews.com
So I rely on whether I feel that it has hurt God or hurt my relationship with God and if it has, I confess it (this isn’t a perfect way of determining venial sin - I confessed one sin so many times that the priest finally told me to stop).
