Many years ago I heard an apostate Catholic trying to tell a faithful Catholic that one sin was just as bad as another, and the faithful Catholic told him, “But, there are degrees of sin!” The apostate thought he knew better than the Catholic gentleman and would not accept the truth. However, in this short essay, I shall attempt to prove that there is indeed degrees of sin, which most of you know anyway, and that a child stealing a candy bar is not as serious as a man who commits murder.
So what does the Bible say, quoting Our Lord? Jesus, speaking of the unfaithful servant in Saint Luke’s Gospel says, 42 “And the Lord said: Who (thinkest thou) is the faithful and wise steward, whom his lord setteth over his family, to give them their measure of wheat in due season? 43 Blessed is that servant, whom when his lord shall come, he shall find so doing. 44 Verily I say to you, he will set him over all that he possesseth. 45 But if that servant shall say in his heart: My lord is long a coming; and shall begin to strike the menservants and maidservants, and to eat and to drink and be drunk: 46 The lord of that servant will come in the day that he hopeth not, and at the hour that he knoweth not, and shall separate him, and shall appoint him his portion with unbelievers. 47 And that servant who knew the will of his lord, and prepared not himself, and did not according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 48 But he that knew not, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. And unto whomsoever much is given, of him much shall be required: and to whom they have committed much, of him they will demand the more.” Here Our Lord speaks of the servant who knew the will of his lord and transgressed, and says he will be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. So if the sin is the same, why isn’t the punishment the same? Because it’s not the same. Voluntary manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter are not the same, and they do not receive the same punishment.
Our Lord also speaks of the weightier things of the law, things that bear more weight than others. 14 “Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites: because you devour the houses of widows, praying long prayers. For this you shall receive the greater judgment. 15 Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites; because you go round about the sea and the land to make one proselyte; and when he is made, you make him the child of hell twofold more than yourselves. 16 Woe to you blind guides, that say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but he that shall swear by the gold of the temple, is a debtor. 17 Ye foolish and blind; for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 18 And whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gift that is upon it, is a debtor. 19 Ye blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20 He therefore that sweareth by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things that are upon it: 21 And whosoever shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth in it: 22 And he that sweareth by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon. 23 Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites; because you tithe mint, and anise, and cummin, and have left the weightier things of the law; judgment, and mercy, and faith. These things you ought to have done, and not to leave those undone [Matthew 23:23] 24 Blind guides, who strain out a gnat, and swallow a camel.’’ He upbraids the hypocritical Pharisees and tells them they will receive the greater judgement. Why are they receiving the greater judgement? Because their sin is greater, and they have left the more important things of the law, the weightier things, sins of omission, which are judgment, and mercy, and faith. Neither is there any comparison between a gnat and a camel!
The Roman Catholic Church rightly teaches that there is such a thing as venial sin, and such a thing as mortal sin. A mortal sin is a deadly sin that kills the life of a soul in a Christian, and a venial sin only wounds it. A venial sin is like a wound on the body that does not take away the life, while a mortal wound takes the life of a man. The Bible says a murderer shall not enter the kingdom of heaven, because he has not the life of Christ in his soul. However, a little child that only takes a candy bar out of a store is not going to burn in hell for all eternity for that little sin. All sin is wrongdoing, but not all sin damns the soul. All sin offends Almighty God but not in the same degree, as shown above.
St. James, speaking of serious sin, says offending in one point, is guilty of all, is here showing us that even one mortal sin unrepented of, can take us to hell. The footnote on this passage explains this very clearly. 10 “And whosoever shall keep the whole law, but offend in one point, is become guilty of all.”
[10] “Guilty of all;”: That is, he becomes a transgressor of the law in such a manner, that the observing of all other points will not avail him to salvation; for he despises the lawgiver, and breaks through the great and general commandment of charity, even by one mortal sin. For all the precepts of the law are to be considered as one total and entire law, and as it were a chain of precepts, where, by breaking one link of this chain, the whole chain is broken, or the integrity of the law consisting of a collection of precepts. A sinner, therefore, by a grievous offence against any one precept, incurs eternal punishment; yet the punishment in hell shall be greater for those who have been greater sinners, as a greater reward shall be for those in heaven who have lived with greater sanctity and perfection.
Soloman, from Proverbs 24, says the just man falls seven times a day, meaning, he sins seven times a day. 16 “For a just man shall fall seven times and shall rise again: but the wicked shall fall down into evil.” The Fathers of the Church instruct us that this refers to venial sins, because he’s called ‘just.’ He could not be called a just man if he was sinning mortally and losing the justice of God. It is Christ Jesus who justifies us by his grace and puts the life of God within us. And Soloman, speaking of the sinner says, “the wicked shall fall into evil.” Saying nothing about the wicked being just.
The fact that God distinguishes between the just man and the wicked tells you right there that all sin is not the same. Our Lord also makes a distinction between our sin sometimes and the sin in our neighbor: 3 “And why seest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye; and seest not the beam that is in thy own eye?” [Matthew 7:3] The definition of a mote is: A very small particle; a speck. There is a mighty big difference between a beam and a mote.
Finally, let us examine the words of St. John in his first epistle. St. John says: 16 “He that knoweth his brother to sin a sin which is not to death, let him ask, and life shall be given to him, who sinneth not to death. There is a sin unto death: for that I say not that any man ask. 17 All iniquity is sin. And there is a sin unto death.” Chapter 5. St. John is speaking here of mortal sin, a sin unto death. And he adds also, that there is a sin not to death. But St. John also has a double meaning here, that he who sins but does not die, life shall be given him if one asks, meaning, he does not have life if it is yet to be given to him.
Food for thought. If Jesus told us, “Judge not and you shall not be judged,” why is he telling the Pharisses “And why even of yourselves, do you not judge that which is just?” St. Luke 12: 57. How do you judge justly? By judging on facts, not hearsay nor appearance. “24 Judge not according to the appearance, but judge just judgment.” St. John chapter 7.
https://motherofgodlibrary.org/2019/05/ Devotion to Mary — A Great Sign of Predestination