Hi, Chris —

You said:

• I was wondering what the Catholic Church says about one who commits a mortal sin, in the eyes of the Church, when one's individual conscience does not see it as a mortal sin and the individual has zero guilt for the action?

1. If the individual is not a Catholic, he is not culpable for the sin.
2. If the individual is a Catholic and not aware of the teaching, he is not culpable for the sin.
3. If the individual is a Catholic and aware of the teaching, whether he is in the Church or has left Her, he is culpable for the sin and should go to Confession before receiving Holy Communion in the Church. A priest is available most Saturday afternoons.
   
   If (he or she) has left the Church but wish to return, they should always go to Confession first; I'm sure the priest will welcome you with open arms! . . . if not, find another priest : (
   

Finally, for a sin to be mortal 1.) it must be a serious matter, 2.) you have to know it's wrong, and 3.) you have to really will it.

Mike

Hi, Chris —

Let's start with the proper understanding of conscience.

Following one's conscience doesn't mean deciding for oneself what is right or wrong.

St. Paul tells us in Romans 1, that what can be known about God, can be known through his creation so we are without excuse. God has written the natural law in the heart of every man so even if he doesn't have specific Revelation, he knows right and wrong.

The conscience is the place in our being where we hear God speak to us and where we decide to:

• obey or disobey
• to believe or to doubt, and
• to have faith and not block God out.

We are all called to be constantly forming our conscience. A Catholic is called to form his conscience according to the Teaching and guidance of the Magisterium.

The probability that there is zero guilt, is highly unlikely. If a Catholic knows it's a sin in the eyes of the Church, then he at least knows that the Church has some authority and understanding beyond his own. More often than not, the person is simply rejecting the Church's teaching, because it's not convenient. After all, we are all sinners, and our tendency, because of original sin, is to want to sin.

On the other hand, some times we do struggle.

1. We either don't understand the Church's teaching.
2. The teaching is difficult to follow, or
3. Sometimes circumstances make the situation look gray, not black or white.

Ultimately, if the person knows the Church says something is wrong then (he or she) knows, deep down, that it is indeed wrong.

Rather than focusing on culpability and sin, I recommend focusing on mercy and grace. If you are struggling to obey a Church teaching, don't focus on trying to find an excuse, focus on Christ.

Focus on what He has done for you and allow Him to form your conscience.

John