Our discussion yesterday brought forth a few interesting matters. One of the matters was on the difference between venial and mortal sin. While being educated about what extenuating circumstances are and being educated about intention – this is more along the lines of miseducation unfortunately – is a good thing, there was a tendency when I was growing up to move the discernment to oneself rather than to the confessional. The logic was that even in cases of grave matter, the matter was mostly likely venial sin and bothering the priest about such matters was just being scrupulous. I remember me and my classmates searching in vain for anything to confess for our first confession. I imagine it is quite apparent after a night of first confession for a priest to think either he is the midst of angels or the children do not really have a good sense of what sin is.
I see it even offered with advice on the Internet and in person. People will claim that you can use contraception if it doesn’t violate one’s conscience. The claim itself isn’t so offensive; it is technically true. The offense is that people will use this justification without ever attempting to discern the matter with their pastor. They will take the time to discern it with thrice divorced Aunt Betty who is still a little bitter about what the nuns taught her, but when it comes to actually informing one’s conscience and trying to conform one’s conscience to the Church’s teaching, they take a pass.
Yet we aren’t limited to this. Confirming the Church’s obsession with sex – or at least her adherents obsession with it, for you rarely have teaching where there isn’t lots of practice – we will have folks comment upon the reconciliation process after sterilization. What much of the Internet advice amounts to is you go get snipped so you don’t have to worry about more children, then go to the confessional and say how sorry you are that you can’t have children, observe the penance, and then have sex without worry about having children. Really quite simple. Only complication is that I’ve never seen an argument that compels a priest to give you the nooky option. Imagine a young man with wife and children walks into the confessional.
Young Man: Father I have sinned. I stole a Mercedes Benz E350.
Father: Have you returned it?
Young Man: No Father. The man who owned it passed away and has no heirs.
Father: I see. Well, why don’t you give it to charity my son.
Young Man: But father, without a car I won’t be able to go to work and my children will starve.
Father: Ah yes. That is very troubling. Well. Park the car on weekends.
Now is it possible for the scenario to go down in a confessional? Sure why not. Should you base your decision on whether to take that Mercedes Benz E350 parked across the street with the keys in the ignition and the coroner approaching the gentleman’s apartment on my little commentary? Should you give assurance to the man that approaches you that he will be able to keep the Mercedes and go to heaven as long as he goes to the confessional? Do we not risk great peril when we make ourselves our confessors?
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