Masturbation Always A Mortal Sin?

[Selah]

[quote name='MissyP89' post='1622503' date='Aug 9 2008, 12:57 PM']Addiction, force of habit, and state in life can also affect one's culpability. Example being a teenager struggling, despite one's best efforts, against increased hormonal flux.[/quote]


Agreed. Hormones can really drive you crazy [spoiler]When I was struggling with sexual temptations such as masturbation, it was hard not to resist because...sigh, no easy way to put this, but...there is the feeling that you need to release. *ick* It was enough to drive me insane.[/spoiler]

[LouisvilleFan]

[quote name='havok579257' post='1624670' date='Aug 11 2008, 09:30 PM']I don;t consider NFP as anything other than a contraceptive which the church is against. To me its the same thing as condoms and the pill. It is just a method you use to purposly avoid pregnancy. I feel like the only reason the church allows it is because of public out cry about contraceptives. To me, NFP is no different than a man pulling out as he is about to ejaculate. If the church said all forms of devices of contraceptives are evil but any method such as the rhythm method and NFP were ok, then I could see your point. Although it just seems like the church picked one contraceptive method and ok'ed that but not other METHODS.[/quote]

Which of those other methods requires fasting, self-sacrifice, and is specifically encouraged in the New Testament?

[lilac_angel]

[quote name='Selah' post='1625204' date='Aug 12 2008, 09:29 AM']Agreed. Hormones can really drive you crazy [spoiler]When I was struggling with sexual temptations such as masturbation, it was hard not to resist because...sigh, no easy way to put this, but...there is the feeling that you need to release. *ick* It was enough to drive me insane.[/spoiler][/quote]

Absolutely seconded.

[mortify]

[quote name='Selah' post='1625204' date='Aug 12 2008, 09:29 AM']Agreed. Hormones can really drive you crazy [spoiler]When I was struggling with sexual temptations such as masturbation, it was hard not to resist because...sigh, no easy way to put this, but...there is the feeling that you need to release. *ick* It was enough to drive me insane.[/spoiler][/quote]

God bless you for fighting the good fight

[Theosopher]

Nothing is [i]always[/i] a mortal sin, because of the subjective elements of sin. Even abortion might not be a mortal sin in some circumstances, such as if the woman had a gun to her head.

[LouisvilleFan]

Well, that's pretty much what this whole thread was about, and what the Catechism is explaining. I think the confusion is coming from the misconception that grave matter equals mortal sin. Most of the time, when we say "mortal sin" in everyday speech, what we mean is "grave matter." We should be more aware of the distinction so our terminology is more accurate, and so we don't implicity judge people. Plus, misinformation about this seems to breed either scrupolosity or apathy.

Having a gun to one's head is a pretty extreme and rare scenario, but metaphorically more than a few women have abortions "with a gun to their head" because their boyfriend threatens to leave (taking a home and income with him), parents threaten to disown their daughter or outright demand the abortion, and employers and athletic departments sometimes pressure mothers into it and will even find a way to front the money. Any of this situations creates incredible stress on a level most young women have no history of handling in the past. That doesn't mean we can judge any individual case, but it's simply common sense that the more aware and more intentional you are of committing a sin, the greater your guilt will be. Both of these are sins of grave matter... that much we know for sure.