Would masturbation in this case be mortal sin?

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I have been fairly successfully abstaining from masturbation for about a year now, with only a couple of slip ups. For the last two weeks, this sin is all I can think about. I have tried not to but can’t stop thinking about it. I feel intense pressure and am starting to feel somewhat shackled by this obligation, even though I’m trying not to feel this way too. Sometimes I feel almost compelled to do it. Intruisive thoughts enter myhead about almost every woman I see, and my psychologist friend says this is due to sexual repression, which I feel intensely. Other effects are also manifesting themselves, which it is not appropriate to discuss here.
If I masturbate in this situation, would it be mortal sin? If I weren’t feeling this way I wouldn’t even consider it. If it would be mortal sin, is there any way I can manage these feelings without sin (bearing in mind I’m not married, and too young to be so) or is it just a cross I have to bear for Our Lord?
 
For a sin to be mortal intent, knowledge, and grave matter must be present. Masturbation is grave matter but as for the other two requirements no one here can tell you.

I know it is extremely difficult (I’ve been there) but the best thing to do is talk to your Confessor. He is the only one who can help you judge your culpability. Until he says it is not mortal you should assume that it is mortal sin and requires Confession before receiving Eucharist.

Talk with your Confessor, know that this is a long and difficult battle that will likely include slip-ups, and that God loves you.

Christ’s peace be with you.
 
After you are aware it’s a mortal sin, it’s definitely so in any cases afterwards.

Fight the devil! He seems to be having a field day with you 😦 I’ve been there.

Get a Blessed St. Benedict medal and wear it 24/7, asking for this saint’s intercession, and the Blessed Virgin’s, to regain your purity. Prayer’s the only thing that can kill this.

God Bless!
Ljubim
 
The only thing I would add is that Catechism states that if the action is the result of habitual practices, that may less the culpability. I’ll try to dig up the exact paragraph.

The fact that you have done well for year, IMHO, places you outside of the culpability argument. I would seek the council of a priest on this fact.

I’ll be praying for you!
 
It doesn’t matter what explanation your phychologist friend gives you, it does not excused it. Pray to God for help. Caving now will make it easier to cave in the future
 
when we give in to temptation it only makes it worse. It won’t make it go away. And yes it will still be a sin… keep on fighting!! Remember one thing… temptation (which is what I think this is) wouldn’t last your whole life. Ask God for strength, and talk to your priest. God bless
 
fermat said:
The only thing I would add is that Catechism states that if the action is the result of habitual practices, that may less the culpability. I’ll try to dig up the exact paragraph.

The fact that you have done well for year, IMHO, places you outside of the culpability argument. I would seek the council of a priest on this fact.

I’ll be praying for you!
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Here it is:
CCC Paragraph 2352:
By masturbation is to be understood the deliberate stimulation of the genital organs in order to derive sexual pleasure. “Both the Magisterium of the Church, in the course of a constant tradition, and the moral sense of the faithful have been in no doubt and have firmly maintained that masturbation is an intrinsically and gravely disordered action.” “The deliberate use of the sexual faculty, for whatever reason, outside of marriage is essentially contrary to its purpose.” For here sexual pleasure is sought outside of “the sexual relationship which is demanded by the moral order and in which the total meaning of mutual self-giving and human procreation in the context of true love is achieved.”

To form an equitable judgment about the subjects’ moral responsibility and to guide pastoral action, one must take into account the affective immaturity, force of acquired habit, conditions of anxiety or other psychological or social factors that lessen, if not even reduce to a minimum, moral culpability.
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Be sure not to take that last paragraph as a ‘it’s a habit, so it’s allowed’ passage. You still need to fight it and you still need to get help, but in regards to the OP about if something is a mortal sin, this paragraph indicates that culpability is subjective in some cases.
 
awkward said:
For a sin to be mortal intent, knowledge, and grave matter must be present. Masturbation is grave matter but as for the other two requirements no one here can tell you.

I know it is extremely difficult (I’ve been there) but the best thing to do is talk to your Confessor. He is the only one who can help you judge your culpability. Until he says it is not mortal you should assume that it is mortal sin and requires Confession before receiving Eucharist.

Talk with your Confessor, know that this is a long and difficult battle that will likely include slip-ups, and that God loves you.

Christ’s peace be with you.
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What if his confessor is wrong & says it’s ok? My Mama had me go see an old confessor when I was a young teen to talk about teen problems. Don’t know how masturbation came up with this priest, but he was bringing up things that were going on with teens at the time & maybe he thought that was 1 of my problems. Well I didn’t really care to even listen to the guy, but it sounded like he was talking about masterbation & saying that it was an ok normal thing for teens to be doing at the time. Don’t know how my Mama felt this guy was a genuine priest, but of course a teen with problems is not going to listen to a priest he doesn’t trust. Well years later the problem was much worser then I thought it was with this priest & it was made public that he was a child molester.

Some times we have to do what we know is right in our hearts & pray we are doing the right thing, because even some of our priests need help. We need to pray for our churches. I think this man is real strong to be fighting this addiction for so long & I hope some how he can get his mind off of these things, but I’m sure it’s hard. Through prayer & strength I’m sure it can be done. They say it can be healthy to have a lil sexual activity if you are going thru something like this, but I think you need to keep yourself busy with other things. Not sure if what they call “blue balls” is 1 of the problems he was talking about, but you really have to avoid it going that far if possible.
 
zachary101 said:
I have been fairly successfully abstaining from masturbation for about a year now, with only a couple of slip ups. For the last two weeks, this sin is all I can think about. I have tried not to but can’t stop thinking about it. I feel intense pressure and am starting to feel somewhat shackled by this obligation, even though I’m trying not to feel this way too. Sometimes I feel almost compelled to do it. Intruisive thoughts enter myhead about almost every woman I see, and my psychologist friend says this is due to sexual repression, which I feel intensely. Other effects are also manifesting themselves, which it is not appropriate to discuss here.
If I masturbate in this situation, would it be mortal sin? If I weren’t feeling this way I wouldn’t even consider it. If it would be mortal sin, is there any way I can manage these feelings without sin (bearing in mind I’m not married, and too young to be so) or is it just a cross I have to bear for Our Lord?
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one may not do so for ANY reason.

as for the thoughts etc…do not ‘try’ so hard…develope a sense of humor about it…and remember – if thoughts or feelings happen and you do not give full consent …it is not a mortal sin…

the best way is not to ‘fight head on’ but do some exercise that is ok for you…and do not concentrate so hard on this area…

do not worry about the sexual repression thing…and perhaps you may need a different counselor…a good Catholic… but there is a point in the fact that you do not want to ‘repress’ as they may say…but approach things with chastity…and the other virtues…

recognize that others out there struggle with the same thing…so relax a bit.

also remember there is a difference between noticing an attractive woman and her beauty and looking lustfully…jimmyakin.org/2009/01/appreciating-beauty-vs-concupiscence.html

as jimmy akin wrote there: "And I can say that if he tries to instantly avert his eyes from every single pretty girl he sees then he will foster an anxiety about temptation that will actually feed the temptation he is seeking to minimize.’

also do not focus…on ‘i must not’…for that just can make things worse…

like try for the next 10 seconds not to think of an apple…

tick tock…

well what did you think of? prob. an apple!

the more we try not to think of something…the more it can come to mind ;0…so instead turn your mind to something else

so best thing is to turn to Christ with love and then move one to something else that is good to do…and relax…

it will pass.
 
SANxJONERO said:
What if his confessor is wrong & says it’s ok? My Mama had me go see an old confessor when I was a young teen to talk about teen problems. Don’t know how masturbation came up with this priest, but he was bringing up things that were going on with teens at the time & maybe he thought that was 1 of my problems. Well I didn’t really care to even listen to the guy, but it sounded like he was talking about masterbation & saying that it was an ok normal thing for teens to be doing at the time. . . .

Some times we have to do what we know is right in our hearts & pray we are doing the right thing, because even some of our priests need help. We need to pray for our churches. I think this man is real strong to be fighting this addiction for so long & I hope some how he can get his mind off of these things, but I’m sure it’s hard. Through prayer & strength I’m sure it can be done.
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Priests can be wrong - I will admit to that. And if a priest says M. is never mortal or never mortal for teenagers than he is off track and outside Church teaching. But CCC says M. can be reduced in culpability depending on circumstances and it is the role of the Confessor to determine the culpability of each individual case.

In my personal case M. has been deemed not mortal sin. This doesn’t mean I give in whenever I feel like it. It just means I don’t have to worry about my salvation or necessarily go to Confession every time I fail. M. is probably still sinful for me, just not mortal. If my Confessor is wrong and M. is mortal sin even in my case - I believe God’s mercy extends to the fact that I am listening to His voice as best I can and trusting in His servant. Like I said, I don’t just give in every time and I do still go to Confession - I just don’t fret over getting to Confession before Mass every time I fail.

In some cases (such as mine) ‘getting your mind off sex’ has little or nothing to do with the actual urge to M. So although it is very important and helpful to keep your mind and what is willingly entering it pure, it isn’t the entire battle. Prayer is what will overcome but not just standard prayer - prayer that includes speaking and listening through God’s servants is also necessary.

My parish priest, all the those in positions of authority within the Church, and Pope Benedict are in my everyday prayers and I hope many others pray for them as well.
 
Congratulations on holding so firmly to God’s will for the last year! 👍 You are very, very blessed right now not to be caught in the grip of habitual masturbation.

Something that has helped me enormously in cleaning up my mind is to turn away from “occasions to sin,” such as movies including scantily clad women, magazines or news stories that include any such images, and books that provoke unclean thoughts. Cutting all those things out of my life has helped me enormously. My Guardian Angel took care of everything outside of my power after I did all that was in my power.

I don’t know if that helps at all or applies to your situation. But remain firm in prayer and in your resolution to obey God’s command as you endure the cross, and listen to people more knowledgeable than me on this thread.
 
awkward said:
Priests can be wrong - I will admit to that. And if a priest says M. is never mortal or never mortal for teenagers than he is off track and outside Church teaching. But CCC says M. can be reduced in culpability depending on circumstances and it is the role of the Confessor to determine the culpability of each individual case.

In my personal case M. has been deemed not mortal sin. This doesn’t mean I give in whenever I feel like it. It just means I don’t have to worry about my salvation or necessarily go to Confession every time I fail. M. is probably still sinful for me, just not mortal. If my Confessor is wrong and M. is mortal sin even in my case - I believe God’s mercy extends to the fact that I am listening to His voice as best I can and trusting in His servant. Like I said, I don’t just give in every time and I do still go to Confession - I just don’t fret over getting to Confession before Mass every time I fail.

In some cases (such as mine) ‘getting your mind off sex’ has little or nothing to do with the actual urge to M. So although it is very important and helpful to keep your mind and what is willingly entering it pure, it isn’t the entire battle. Prayer is what will overcome but not just standard prayer - prayer that includes speaking and listening through God’s servants is also necessary.

My parish priest, all the those in positions of authority within the Church, and Pope Benedict are in my everyday prayers and I hope many others pray for them as well.
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If you don’t mind, will you get into more detail about these cases?
 
I’m 24 and single so I know what the struggle is like. I’ve done an intense study of the Theology of the Body. This, along with praying for pornstars and getting rid of a laptop are crucial. Sexual desire is like a rocket. If we point it upwards, it will lead us towards God, but inverting it ends in destruction. Learning how to launch that sexual desire instead of inverting it is huge, because it is a GOOD desire. Feel free to email me at danfinocchio@gmail.com if you’d like to talk more about it
 
I’m 14 and this is extremely difficult for me. After confession a week ago I was doing alright, and a few days ago those lustful thoughts started invading my mind once again. I know that struggle, but haven’t been “clean” for that long yet, I hope I can be. I want to be able to give it up completely by the time I’m engaged, but before that I’ll be trying and praying.
 
Keep in mind that most psychologists, unless they are Catholic and loyal to the teaching of the Church, will reflect the morals of the world in the here and now. In fact, theories of psychology come and go and are lacking in true Christian focus.

I am not trying to say that all psychology is harmfull, but we have to be wary of the mindset of those who do not believe the way we do.

There is such a thing as an association of Catholic therapists.
 
zachary101, let me tell you what my cousin told us at Easter about another kind of addiction. She is in her mid-50’s and smoked for most of her life. She stopped a couple of years ago. Recently, out of a desire to “see what it would be like,” she spent nearly 6 dollars on a pack of cigarettes. When she lit one up, it immediately made her sick, and she left the rest of the pack behind, having wasted her money.

I tell you this because, having given up your habit for such a long time, you, too, are very likely to be disappointed if you indulge. You will trade your eternal salvation for something that turns out not even pleasant. NOT WORTH IT.

Betsy
 
awkward said:
Priests can be wrong - I will admit to that. And if a priest says M. is never mortal or never mortal for teenagers than he is off track and outside Church teaching. But CCC says M. can be reduced in culpability depending on circumstances and it is the role of the Confessor to determine the culpability of each individual case.

In my personal case M. has been deemed not mortal sin. This doesn’t mean I give in whenever I feel like it. It just means I don’t have to worry about my salvation or necessarily go to Confession every time I fail. M. is probably still sinful for me, just not mortal. If my Confessor is wrong and M. is mortal sin even in my case - I believe God’s mercy extends to the fact that I am listening to His voice as best I can and trusting in His servant. Like I said, I don’t just give in every time and I do still go to Confession - I just don’t fret over getting to Confession before Mass every time I fail.

In some cases (such as mine) ‘getting your mind off sex’ has little or nothing to do with the actual urge to M. So although it is very important and helpful to keep your mind and what is willingly entering it pure, it isn’t the entire battle. Prayer is what will overcome but not just standard prayer - prayer that includes speaking and listening through God’s servants is also necessary.

My parish priest, all the those in positions of authority within the Church, and Pope Benedict are in my everyday prayers and I hope many others pray for them as well.
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So, just curious, what gave you the big OK for it not to be a mortal sin??
 
LittleDavid said:
So, just curious, what gave you the big OK for it not to be a mortal sin??
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I’ve already linked a previous thread that gives some detail to my personal case (how it came about if not exactly why).
But basically, level of acquired habit, possibility of past abuse, age at which habit was acquired (believe it or not I was in 1st grade when this started), and perhaps stress levels along with other circumstances. The first three reasons are the big ones. I’d also add that M. is almost self-abuse (beyond misusing body) - not pleasurable and . . . well I really hate it actually.
 
I guess I really don’t understand culpability around this subject. Masturbation is a sin no
doubt but the distinction between moral or venial is difficult. Is it is a mortal sin if no lust is involved?
 
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