Which sin do you think God dislikes more?

[TK421]

Masturbation or murder?

Both are sins of grave matter, but which one is more offensive to God would depend on how much charity was extinguished in the act of disobedience. The intuitive response would be “murder” but it isn’t guaranteed. Also, masturbation is infrequently an isolated ‘act’ but rather a reoccurring lifestyle of self-gratification, which can produce 1) a broken family, and subsequently a) a broken spouse, and b) broken children, which can lead to a butterfly effect, such as the one child being emotionally wounded during childhood from separation or fighting between parents and not becoming a bishop that could have reformed an entire diocese, or a doctor that could have discovered a cure to a terrible disease. Or the person themselves - because of the self-gratifying lifestyle - being pulled down a path of mediocrity and pettiness where otherwise they could have achieved enormous good with their time and talents. The sins of commission are the sins we see, and the sins of omission are invisible.

Even so, the offense to God would not be in any unforeseen consequences down the road, but in how greatly charity is lost from the person. If a person sees a friend, sibling, or son/daughter cut down by another person, and then in a swell of rage murders the killer without having need to do so, then a grave sin has been committed, but contextually, the lose of charity might not be nearly as great. Love is the only thing that is of any value to God. Everything else is meaningless without it. Killing another person is arguably the worst thing you can do to violate human dignity (although arguably rape or other extreme abuse might be seen as actually a worse molestation against another person’s dignity than simply killing them).

So there is no concrete way to answer the question. The intuitive response is ‘murder of course’, but it is not outside the sphere of reason/logic in a contextual situation for masturbation to be worse. Nor would the relative rarity of one and the relative frequency of the other objectively change the lose of charity in the act/lifestyle, especially since many of us have committed murder in our hearts. St Paul says, “He who hates his brother is a murderer”.

 

[friardchips]

Both are sins of grave matter, but which one is more offensive to God would depend on how much charity was extinguished in the act of disobedience. The intuitive response would be “murder” but it isn’t guaranteed. Also, masturbation is infrequently an isolated ‘act’ but rather a reoccurring lifestyle of self-gratification, which can produce 1) a broken family, and subsequently a) a broken spouse, and b) broken children, which can lead to a butterfly effect, such as the one child being emotionally wounded during childhood from separation or fighting between parents and not becoming a bishop that could have reformed an entire diocese, or a doctor that could have discovered a cure to a terrible disease. Even so, the offense to God would not be in any unforeseen temporal consequences, but in how greatly charity is lost from the person. Killing another person is arguably the worst thing you can do to violate human dignity (although arguably rape or other extreme abuse might be seen as actually a worse molestation against another person’s dignity than simply killing them).

So there is no concrete way to answer the question.

vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s1c1a8.htm

*‘1858 Grave matter is specified by the Ten Commandments, corresponding to the answer of Jesus to the rich young man: "Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and your mother."132 The gravity of sins is more or less great: murder is graver than theft. One must also take into account who is wronged: violence against parents is in itself graver than violence against a stranger.’

‘1860…But no one is deemed to be ignorant of the principles of the moral law, which are written in the conscience of every man…Sin committed through malice, by deliberate choice of evil, is the gravest.’

‘1873 The root of all sins lies in man’s heart. The kinds and the gravity of sins are determined principally by their objects.’*

 

[Bradski]

Also, masturbation is infrequently an isolated ‘act’ but rather a reoccurring lifestyle of self-gratification, which can produce 1) a broken family, and subsequently a) a broken spouse, and b) broken children, which can lead to a butterfly effect, such as the one child being emotionally wounded during childhood from separation or fighting between parents and not becoming a bishop that could have reformed an entire diocese, or a doctor that could have discovered a cure to a terrible disease.

Or genocide or a great plague or even nuclear holocaust. Who can tell where playing with your genitals may lead.

From what’s been said, it might be that masturbating and not repenting is worse than commiting murder and repenting. The first might get you an eternity of torment, but the second…well, here are the keys to the kingdom of God. Step this way Mr. Pot.

 

[meltzerboy]

“Negative”?

The commandments are Righteous.

The commandment not to murder is negative in the sense that it tells us what NOT to do instead of what to do. Commandments to honor thy father and thy mother and to remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy are positive commandments since they tell us what to do.

 

[ANV]

So unrepented masturbation is worse than repented murder?

 

[fhansen]

Pride/hypocrisy.