Are the seven deadly sins mortal or venial?

Answer 1

The early Church created lists of "seven deadly sins" at different times and in different circumstances. For example, Tertullian says the seven deadly sins were idolatry, blasphemy, murder, adultery, fornication, false-witness, and fraud. When hermit monks began to live alone in the desert in the belief that in isolation they could not sin, they began to suffer temptations unique to their circumstances, which created a new list of seven deadly sins, such as gluttony and envy. Remember that these 'sins' were directed at the desert hermits of the day, and you are not a desert hermit. These 'sins' are vices to be avoided, but not crimes to hide in guilty shame. Sin is sin, no matter how man tries to package it. It does not change with time.

Answer 2

Before i answer this question I would like to clarify the difference between a mortal sin and a venial sin:

- Mortal Sin = the action was serious, the person knew the action was wrong, the person committed the action with full awareness and intent

- Venial Sin = when any of those 3 credentials are not met

Because the difference between Mortal and Venial sin is so fine, we can not for certain say whether any sin is mortal or venial because we do not know the mind or heart of the person committing the sin, only God can.

But if the person knows that Lust is a sin, and goes and cheats on his wife with full knowledge of the sinfulness of the action, then it is safe to say he has committed a mortal sin.

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Catholic AnswerThe "seven deadly sins" is a catechetical formulation of the capital sins. In other words, it is a way of teaching the capital sins which are called deadly as they are the basic sins, which, if deliberately and fully consented to, deprive a person of the supernatural life of God in the soul.

from Modern Catholic Dictionary by John A. Hardon, S.J. Doubleday & Co., Inc. Garden City, NY 1980

Capital Sins. Those sins to which man's fallen nature is mainly inclined and that are, as a result, the source of all other human failings. The name "Capital" does not mean that they are necessarily grave sins. They are leading tendencies toward sin and are seven in number: pride, avarice, lust, envy, gluttony, anger, and sloth. Theology justifies the number by pointing to the goods that human nature seeks to attain or the evils it wants to avoid. The goods desired and the evils disliked can be material or spiritual, and either real or imaginary. Thus, pride and vainglory come from wanting to be held in high honor and glory, and from preening oneself in the imagination. Gluttony comes from individual high living, lust from sexuality inborn to preserve the race, and avarice from the gathering of wealth. The repulsions are about good things wrongfully regarded as threatening our own proper good and that therefore are grieved over or actively combated. Spiritual values menace our physical pleasure and ease, hence, sloth or boredom about spiritual values. Envy is much the same; it resents another's good qualities because they may lower our own self-esteem. To flare out at others is anger. (Etym. Latin capitalis, principal, acting in the manner of a head.)

Answer 3

Of course not