Which mortal sins would be a surprise to most Catholics?

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Ziggamafu:
If he or she is “surprised” then it must not be a mortal sin, since such an action requires intent with full knowledge.
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Dear friend

Exactly 🙂 A sin is not a sin unless you know it is and even more so is not a mortal sin

This doesn’t mean we should remain ignorant of Christ, we should seek with all our heart to KNOW

God Bless you and much love and peace to you

Teresa
 
Annunciata said:
Not teaching your chidren the faith, solely relying on others …

Having been a catechist fo over 30 years you just cannot imagine how many parents do not teach their children anything about the Faith… and do rely on CCD to do the job! Then they don’t send them to Mass because they feel that CCD is enough…poor babies to much for them on Sundays…might interfere with their sports, etc…:rolleyes:
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As a Catechist, I also encountered this one. Sports taking priority over one’s eternal soul. I had parents that pulled the kids from class any time there was a sports practice that interferred, let alone a game. I could understand if once during the year, the kid was in a Championship Game and needed to be excused. Especially if a call were made in advance and a request were made to help ensure the student remained up to speed on the curriculum. This I would find completely appropriate and would go out of my way to support.

But the thought that CCD or other religious obligations take last place to other worldly concerns boggles my mind. It shows that the parents don’t really understand what’s going on in the first place. If they fully realized that they have been given the responsibility of preparing their children for the difficult path to attaining Eternal Life, and truly believed that there is Eternal Life and it’s NOT a foregone conclusion for anyone who isn’t absolutely evil, I don’t know how they could set their priority as they do.

It’s sad that so many parents don’t live the truth in their lives as they raise their children. I thank God that I at least know it’s my job. I may be doing an imperfect job, but at least I know to try. And I’ve taught my daughter to pray for Faith, and at this time she’s done so, and her prayers have been answered, Thanks be to God.

With the rest of the details where I so frequently fall short, and I do, I’m somewhat less concerned, as I know I’ve done what I know to do and given her to God’s care.

I also liked the post regarding TV. I grew up with the TV on non-stop around the house. I did take a 6 year hiatus with no television during the 80’s and when I started watching again, I was amazed at what was on television. But we quickly become numbed to the messages we are seeing and forget that they are even offensive.

Now that I’ve immersed myself into my faith, I’m finding that I’m reevaluating what I watch and what I allow my daughter to watch. My husband isn’t making the same decisions, so there are times I watch things with him that I wouldn’t personally chose, so as to avoid being scrupulous. But I am amazed at the level of disrespectful sexuality portrayed in the media and the promotion of outright sin especially in commercials. I try to minimize the amount of TV my daughter is allowed to watch. (The excess in homework works in my favor here!)

CARose
 
I’m sure others have said this, but you need to do a fact check on what you believe to be mortal sins.
 
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Ziggamafu:
If he or she is “surprised” then it must not be a mortal sin, since such an action requires intent with full knowledge.
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There is truth to this, but OTOH we have to evangelize: suppose we observe a culture (say, Europe) in which cohabitation and multiple adultery with fornication partner exchange is rampant. It’s true that they don’t “know” that they are “committing sins”, but we have to tell them that those are “sins” even before they “know” that fact. There is some point before a person “knows” the truth at which they yet have to be told the truth. Otherwise you could just leave the barbarians as they are and figure well, they don’t know they are “sinning”, so they’re fine.

I think the area that would be the greatest “surprise” would be holy days and their importance. The areas of greatest negligence, on the other hand, in terms of frequency, are probably teaching the faith and understanding the nature of sexual sins. Those are probably “hard pills to swallow”–although perhaps all too easy in the latter case.
 
The one called “not having the number of children you are called to have” could not possibly be a mortal sin. Mortal sin requires full knowledge. You could not possibly know the number of children you are called to have unless you have some kind of direct pipeline to God.
 
Listener 👋

I agree we cannot know for absolute certain how many children we are suppose to have, but the reason for not having more blessings can easily result in grave matter. The Church in her infinite wisdom allows for non-selfish reasons to space children and / or to stop conceiving. When our reasons become prideful and / or selfish then we step over the fence away from God’s abundant love and life.

Examples could include:

  1. *]“I have got a boy / girl, now I am finished.”
    *]“I want to retire early.”
    *]“Why would I want another kid?”
    *]“Have you seen my kids? Way to much work for me.”
    *]“I hate kids.”
    *]“I really want to remodel the house.”
    *]“Have you seen the Jones’ kids, that enough reason for me?”
    *]“I am 40, my baby days are over.” Note: age can be a valid reason, but this is one of the most abused reasons.

    Let’s remember to reject life without a valid reason is to reject God.

    God is life. :yup:

    God considers all children a blessing and not a burden. 👍

    God’s first command is “be fertile and multiply,” not have two and retire early.

    The key is prayer, obedience and openness to God.

    I hope this helps.

    :blessyou:

    Prayer: My God if I am called to have more children please give me and my spouse the desire to be open to life.

    Mother Mary, pray for us.
 
Yes…an elaboration:
  1. The idea that a married couple should know how many children they are called to have is absurd. I don’t recall seeing this specific call any where in magisterial documents.
  2. Though parents are responsible for their children’s religious education, this responsibility simply means they must provide for it, not necessarily do the teaching (except by example) themselves (though this certainly is the ideal)
 
I assumed the question was in regards to nominal Catholics, those people who say they’re Catholic… and I picked “Mass Attendance.” I forget what those things are called - that list of things we’re required to do at a minimum, but it includes: going to Mass on every day of obligation, receiving communion once a year, fasting and abstaining on required days, etc. I think a lot of people don’t know them, or else they don’t believe them or something.
 
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FelixBlue:
Yes…an elaboration:
  1. The idea that a married couple should know how many children they are called to have is absurd. I don’t recall seeing this specific call any where in magisterial documents.
  2. Though parents are responsible for their children’s religious education, this responsibility simply means they must provide for it, not necessarily do the teaching (except by example) themselves (though this certainly is the ideal)
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🙂

In regards to elaboration #1, please see post #33. I should have worded that one differently,:yup: athough still valid when explained better.

Elaboration #2, please see post #7.

Here is CCC quote helping to clarify.

The duties of parents

>2221 The fecundity of conjugal love cannot be reduced solely to the procreation of children, but must extend to their moral education and their spiritual formation. "The role of parents in education is of such importance that it is almost impossible to provide an adequate substitute."29 The right and the duty of parents to educate their children are primordial and inalienable.30

**:blessyou: **
 
I chose the option of missing a Holy Day of Obligation w/o a valid reason and I include Sunday Masses in this (which are, technically, an HDO) because this is the most common thing I run into with the very few Catholics I know in real life.

I work with a woman who I found out was a Catholic and one day I asked her if she went to Mass every Sunday. She said yes and I asked her why. She said she went every Sunday because she is a cantor and needs to sing, her children are enrolled in classes on Sundays, and that if her family didn’t go, other social obligations would not be met.

I mentioned in reply that one of the things I learned in RCIA is that missing Mass without a valid reason is a sin that requires Confession. She then quickly said that she used to teach RCIA and that she used to tell people that missing mass was between the individual and God. That if a person felt guilty for missing it, then that was God telling that person that he/she needed to attend Mass. I think in my co-worker’s mind, she was agreeing with me, because she was nodding her head while telling me this, but she really was not giving Church teaching.

So, that is an example of why I picked the missing Holy Days option, but I think all of those choices are either news to most Catholics, or else just plain ignored.
 
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johnq:
Knowing that knowledge is a requirement, lets assume all Catholics were taught moral theology.
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We have made ignorance into a sacrament these days. A Catholic who knows that the Church teaches against something, like artificial birth control, and does it anyway has full knowledge. One does not need to have a doctorate in moral theology to have knoweldge of the basics of our faith.

Catholics are required to properly form their consciences. See CCC#1740 and 1741. IMO, many of us are guilty of mortal sins. We know all types of useless info. We know sports stats back to 1950, yet we do not know birth control is an intrinsic evil? What are we doing with out time and talents God gave us? Are we learning our faith as required of us?
 
I chose the “having a certain # of children” because I don’t understand what is being said here. We are obliged to be open to life in our marriage, and use NFP only with a good reason for spacing and putting off children. But I’ve never heard of a magic number. Whats that about?
 
Well, I vote hands down for the option: - **using Artificial Birth Control and having
‘m-a-r-t-i-a-l’ relations ** .

I would have thought it a serious sin to be having relations with a martian, with or without Artificial Birth Control!!! :eek:
 
Well, since mortal sins require full knowledge, your question is kind of a paradox in and of itself. Since evading full knowledge by willful ignorance or hardness of heart is itself a grave matter, probabably willful ignorance and hardness of heart would be my answer.

I’m very interested that your list is all about sex, accepting and raising children in the right way, and going to church, as if that were the sum of Catholicism. We do have an apostolic mission other than indoctrinating our own kids… so why is the list so limited in scope?
 
What exactley do you mean by “Catholic”.Lots of people who call them selves Catholic just believe that Jesus was God and that no matter what they do, they will go to Heaven.

As for the martial relations. Would it be a mortal sin if there was the possibilety of concieving?
 
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StephiePea:
I chose the “having a certain # of children” because I don’t understand what is being said here. We are obliged to be open to life in our marriage, and use NFP only with a good reason for spacing and putting off children. But I’ve never heard of a magic number. Whats that about?
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You caught me. My grammer is suspect. It was poorly worded.:whacky: Please see post # 33.
 
self-gratification…or whatever the more polite phrase used was…

none of my friends think it is a mortal sin- most don’t think it’s a sin at all- the few that do think it’s venial (then again I don’t take a poll on my friends’ views on this- but I know their opinions about other sexual issues).
 
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