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Traditional Catholic Faith => Catholic Living in the Modern World => Topic started by: Smedley Butler on October 20, 2018, 05:16:29 PM

Title: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Smedley Butler on October 20, 2018, 05:16:29 PM
Was anyone else besides Ladislaus unaware of this?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 20, 2018, 05:18:06 PM
I have them, but I now understand they are a mortal sin. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 20, 2018, 05:23:45 PM
Nonsense.  So if I got a small cross tattooed on my arm with "Christianus" beneath it, that's a mortal sin?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 20, 2018, 05:27:52 PM
So, are you a Judaizer who believes that God's prohibition of tattoos in Leviticus still applies?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 20, 2018, 05:29:29 PM
Now, I believe that some of the more extreme forms and degrees of tattooing are disfiguring to the point of being mortal sin.

Are you going to say next that women who pierce their ears to wear earrings are committing mortal sin?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Smedley Butler on October 20, 2018, 06:31:13 PM
I have never met a Trad priest who did not teach that getting tattoed is a mortsl sin.


We are taught our body is on loan to us from God and is the temple of the Holy Ghost. 

That is why you cannot get tattoos, go skydiving, etc.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Matto on October 20, 2018, 07:00:55 PM
I was under the impression that getting a tattoo was a sin. I have had conversations with other laymen about tattoos being sinful, but I have never had a discussion with a priest about it or heard a sermon on it.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 20, 2018, 07:03:52 PM
I have never met a Trad priest who did not teach that getting tattoed is a mortsl sin.

I have never met one who said that a small tattoo was a mortal sin.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 20, 2018, 07:05:11 PM
That is why you cannot get tattoos, go skydiving, etc.

Skydiving is immoral (without good cause) for entirely different reasons.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 20, 2018, 07:50:04 PM
Nonsense.  So if I got a small cross tattooed on my arm with "Christianus" beneath it, that's a mortal sin?
Most Coptic Christians, including Eastern Coptic Catholics, wear a small cross tattooed on their arms as a sign that they are Christians.

It is so much a part of their culture, that almost every Coptic Christian wears that tattoo.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 20, 2018, 09:14:24 PM
Tattoos were always a clear indicator of no class, till quite recently. It still is a sign of no class, but now it is also a big sign to point out the Hollywood brainwashed lemmings. Tomorrow they'll be wearing cow patties on their heads if Hollywood starts that ball rolling.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 20, 2018, 09:25:27 PM
I actually have a serious question. I do understand now that tattoos are a mortal sin, but I was wondering if adding to one that’s already there a mortal sin? More to take away from the reason I got it. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Pax Vobis on October 20, 2018, 09:26:44 PM

Quote
Tattoos were always a clear indicator of no class,
Tramp stamps.  Ha ha.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: MidwestLayman on October 20, 2018, 10:20:08 PM
I don't believe tattoos are mortal sins, at least to my understanding.

The late Lawrence Auster had a discussion (http://www.amnation.com/vfr/archives/022804.html) about this that I found rather interesting.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Neil Obstat on October 21, 2018, 12:58:01 AM
.
How many priests always refuse giving Holy Communion to a recipient who has a visible tattoo at the Communion rail?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: MMagdala on October 21, 2018, 01:19:30 AM
I'm pretty sure that I recently heard Fr. Ripperger mention this in one of his audio sermons.  (As yes, being a grave sin.)  Same with tongue piercings -- and such individuals should not be given HC until the disgusting ring is removed.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 21, 2018, 04:33:55 AM
I actually have a serious question. I do understand now that tattoos are a mortal sin, but I was wondering if adding to one that’s already there a mortal sin? More to take away from the reason I got it.
Would you entertain the idea of having your tattoo removed?

This would be a good example to your children: to undo the wrong.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: jvk on October 21, 2018, 07:16:26 AM
I did hear a sermon about this. 

Fr. Crane gave one, just at the time I was considering getting a small one...(back in my younger, crazier days).  It IS a mortal sin.  And the reasoning is: the body is the temple of the Holy Ghost.  Any tattoos would be a desecration of it.  Thus, it's a mortal sin.  I can't remember if he applied that same precept to multiple body piercings or not, and how women getting their ears pierced would pertain to it, but I DO remember that part quite clearly!
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: MyrnaM on October 21, 2018, 08:59:40 AM
A Mortal sin is mortal when only the three conditions have been met.


In order for a sin to be mortal, it must meet three conditions:

This means that mortal sins cannot be done "accidentally." A person who commits a mortal sin is one who knows that their sin is wrong, but still deliberately commits the sin anyway. This means that mortal sins are "premeditated" by the sinner and thus are truly a rejection of God’s law and love.






Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Smedley Butler on October 21, 2018, 09:50:32 AM
Ladislaus, how you can have spent time in an SSPX seminary and not know this is perplexing, because they teach this, as several others here have attested to.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 21, 2018, 09:52:49 AM
Would you entertain the idea of having your tattoo removed?

This would be a good example to your children: to undo the wrong.
I have about 5. It would cost an astonishing amount of money, one I have would cost a 1-2 grand easy because of placement. Tattoos are cheaper to get, and way more expensive to get rid of. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Cantarella on October 21, 2018, 10:02:35 AM
I don't know whether or not tattoos are a mortal sin (I think this would depend on every particular situation, motive, amount, theme, etc.). They are a sure sign of degeneracy, however. Most especially, in women. I've heard you can tell whether a girl is damaged, just by looking at this indication alone. 

Catholics should reject all degeneracy.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: 800 Cruiser on October 21, 2018, 11:08:04 AM
Other than the body is the temple, how exactly is this a desecration?  In some English I have a possibility of following and understanding  :confused:
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: 2Vermont on October 21, 2018, 11:16:55 AM
I don't know whether or not tattoos are a mortal sin (I think this would depend on every particular situation, motive, amount, theme, etc.). 
I wonder whether it would qualify as a form of "self-mutilation" which is a sin.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 21, 2018, 11:40:23 AM
I have about 5. It would cost an astonishing amount of money, one I have would cost a 1-2 grand easy because of placement. Tattoos are cheaper to get, and way more expensive to get rid of.
Can you cover up these tattoos by wearing modest apparel so that your children and others will not see them?

Some doctors in the past were advertising free or reduced cost removal of tattoos.

Whatever you do, please do not add more tattoos because there is always a risk of infection or reaction to the ink.
Less is best.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 11:44:32 AM
I'm pretty sure that I recently heard Fr. Ripperger mention this in one of his audio sermons.  (As yes, being a grave sin.)  Same with tongue piercings -- and such individuals should not be given HC until the disgusting ring is removed.

Well, tongue piercings entail an objective irreverence for Holy Communion ... which is received on the tongue.

Very few sins do not admit of degrees.  Someone who gets a small tattoo of a cross on his upper arm is not in the same class as the person on whom one cannot even find a patch of natural skin.  To categorically state that tattoos are always mortal sin, or mutilations are a mortal sin is unreasonable and extreme.  Church has never condemned earrings on women and, from the physical standpoint it's entirely the same as piercing the tongue.  Now piercing the tongue is disgusting to most of us, but would it be possible to find a culture where people feel the same way about pierced ears?

I agree that the extreme tattoos most likely involve mortal sin, but someone who gets a small tattoo of a cross or a small rose (as some women do), I really don't think that's any more sinful than wearing an earring.  We're now putting getting a small tattoo in the same category (mortal sin) as, say, fornication?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:00:31 PM
Would you entertain the idea of having your tattoo removed?

This would be a good example to your children: to undo the wrong.

Just FYI, some guys recently developed a technique to remove tattoos using macrophages.  No need for burning them away with lasers and leaving scars.  I don't know if it's been commercialized.

https://newatlas.com/new-tattoo-removal-cream-results-in-gain-with-no-pain/36107/
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:01:06 PM
Just for the record, I do not have any tattoos and so don't have any "skin in the game" as it were.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:02:50 PM
I wonder whether it would qualify as a form of "self-mutilation" which is a sin.

But the Church has never condemned earrings, and those too are technically a mutilation.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: MMagdala on October 21, 2018, 12:03:41 PM
We're now putting getting a small tattoo in the same category (mortal sin) as, say, fornication?
Who said anything about fornication?  Are you aware that there are degrees of gravity among grave sins?  
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:04:08 PM
Ladislaus, how you can have spent time in an SSPX seminary and not know this is perplexing, because they teach this, as several others here have attested to.

This was never taught while I was there.  Were you there?  And I see no attestation of that on this thread.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:06:25 PM
Who said anything about fornication?  Are you aware that there are degrees of gravity among grave sins?  

Obviously there are degrees of mortal sin, but they all entail loss of sanctifying grace.  But putting it into the category of mortal sin (alongside things like fornication, murder, grand theft, etc.) ... especially for small tattoos, that's pretty extreme.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 21, 2018, 12:06:48 PM
I'm thinking of getting a tattoo of hair on the crown of my head. It's either that or become the pope or a Jєω, so I can wear a skull cap. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:09:17 PM
I'm thinking of getting a tattoo of hair on the crown of my head. 

Would this tattoo say "666"?  You could go out as Damien from The Omen for Halloween.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:10:26 PM
Other than the body is the temple, how exactly is this a desecration?  In some English I have a possibility of following and understanding  :confused:

Yeah, I don't see how putting a cross or a rose somewhere modest counts as "desecration".
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 21, 2018, 12:11:57 PM
A Mortal sin is mortal when only the three conditions have been met.

  • Mortal sin is a sin of grave matter
  • Mortal sin is committed with full knowledge of the sinner
  • Mortal sin is committed with deliberate consent of the sinner

In order for a sin to be mortal, it must meet three conditions:

This means that mortal sins cannot be done "accidentally." A person who commits a mortal sin is one who knows that their sin is wrong, but still deliberately commits the sin anyway. This means that mortal sins are "premeditated" by the sinner and thus are truly a rejection of God’s law and love.
The second one, "Mortal sin is committed with full knowledge of the sinner", is erroneously used today to excuse ALL sinners and all persons in non-Catholic false religions from just about anything. Today the Aztecs who sacrificed living men's hearts and then ate the arms and legs, would be considered saved if they were not clearly taught that it was wrong.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:13:45 PM
The second one, "Mortal sin is committed with full knowledge of the sinner", is erroneously used today to excuse ALL sinners and all persons in non-Catholic false religions from just about anything.

You're absolutely correct.  Even for pagans, they are held accountable for those things contrary to natural law.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 21, 2018, 12:21:09 PM
Yeah, I don't see how putting a cross or a rose somewhere modest counts as "desecration".
Beware! The rose does have Rosicrucian implications.
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On the other hand, wearing the tattooed Sign of the Cross on the wrist, as is the standard custom in the East, might repel a Moslem from raping an Eastern Catholic girl or woman as she is marked as a Christian from birth even if she were to be stolen from her parents as an infant. Her ears are also pierced and a tiny earring of the Cross is given her. She is also signed with the Cross at Baptism. Thus, she is marked three times with the Holy Cross.
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Raids upon Eastern Christian homes do occur where infants and girls are held captive and then adopted into Muslim families to be raised as Muslims or as sex slaves. Boys over the age of five and men are usually killed. Let us pray for these Christians.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 21, 2018, 12:21:50 PM
Can you cover up these tattoos by wearing modest apparel so that your children and others will not see them?

Some doctors in the past were advertising free or reduced cost removal of tattoos.

Whatever you do, please do not add more tattoos because there is always a risk of infection or reaction to the ink.
Less is best.
All except one is covered by clothes, or hair.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: 2Vermont on October 21, 2018, 12:40:46 PM
But the Church has never condemned earrings, and those too are technically a mutilation.
True.  
Something about tattoos reminds me of branding.  As if we were animals. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:53:10 PM
Beware! The rose does have Rosicrucian implications.
.
On the other hand, wearing the tattooed Sign of the Cross on the wrist, as is the standard custom in the East, might repel a Moslem from raping an Eastern Catholic girl or woman as she is marked as a Christian from birth even if she were to be stolen from her parents as an infant. Her ears are also pierced and a tiny earring of the Cross is given her. She is also signed with the Cross at Baptism. Thus, she is marked three times with the Holy Cross.
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Raids upon Eastern Christian homes do occur where infants and girls are held captive and then adopted into Muslim families to be raised as Muslims or as sex slaves. Boys over the age of five and men are usually killed. Let us pray for these Christians.

Is this true, that they will leave the girls alone if they are marked as Christians?

You're right.  I mentioned a rose and a cross in the same thread.  Maybe I too, like Bishop Williamson, and a secret Rosicrucian.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 12:54:23 PM
True.  
Something about tattoos reminds me of branding.  As if we were animals.

Yes, it does.  But what if I WANTED to brand myself as belonging to Christ?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 21, 2018, 12:58:40 PM
Is this true, that they will leave the girls alone if they are marked as Christians?

You're right.  I mentioned a rose and a cross in the same thread.  Maybe I too, like Bishop Williamson, and a secret Rosicrucian.
Miracles do happen.
.
I remember the story of a young Filipino lady who was wearing the brown scapular.
Her village was located on an island currently held by Muslims terrorists.
These Muslims will often rape a young woman and then claim her as a bride
because the family will feel dishonored.
.
When a Moslem tried to rape her, he saw a blinding light coming from her scapular
and fled in terror. Later on, he became a Christian and related the miracle to the priest.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: 2Vermont on October 21, 2018, 12:59:54 PM
Yes, it does.  But what if I WANTED to brand myself as belonging to Christ?
Christ has never commanded us to do such a thing.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 21, 2018, 01:01:53 PM
Christ has never commanded us to do such a thing.
We are signed with the Holy Cross at our baptism.
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Sometimes miracles have happened where Moslems and other infidels have seen a brilliant white Cross shine from where the Holy Anointing oil was used at Holy Baptism or at Holy Confirmation.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: 2Vermont on October 21, 2018, 01:05:42 PM
We are signed with the Holy Cross at our baptism.

Agreed.  There is no reason to brand our bodies.  I'm not saying it's a "sin", but it doesn't seem right.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Stubborn on October 21, 2018, 01:16:36 PM
Other than the body is the temple, how exactly is this a desecration?  In some English I have a possibility of following and understanding  :confused:
I can't remember all the details I've read on this subject, but the sin committed is the sin of pride. By getting tattoos, you're inordinately decorating(?) yourself, you show your body off by inordinately having certain parts of your body stand out, proudly putting yourself on display.

Excessive tattooing is actually imitating (the sincerest form of flattery) the "ignorant natives" who worship false gods, who pierce, cut and paint themselves, generally as part of a pagan (demonic) ritual. The difference is, modern tattoos leave a permanent character on the body, whereas the ignorant natives' markings are only temporary.    
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Nadir on October 21, 2018, 05:18:25 PM
Pleased you brought up the subject of paganism. The more pagan our society becomes the more  people are tattooed.

But although vanity may come into it, I believe that it's largely to do with a lack or loss of identity. Think of how many children grow up today without knowing  who they are because they have no knowledge of their fathers. 

What Catholic, sure of his/her value in God's eyes, has him/herself tattooed? 

A tattoo is the mark of slavery, or as someone else pointed out, cattle is marked by their owner with his brand. It is especially sad to see people permanently marked, especially on their faces. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 21, 2018, 06:12:43 PM
Pleased you brought up the subject of paganism. The more pagan our society becomes the more  people are tattooed.

But although vanity may come into it, I believe that it's largely to do with a lack or loss of identity. Think of how many children grow up today without knowing  who they are because they have no knowledge of their fathers.

What Catholic, sure of his/her value in God's eyes, has him/herself tattooed?

A tattoo is the mark of slavery, or as someone else pointed out, cattle is marked by their owner with his brand. It is especially sad to see people permanently marked, especially on their faces.
I’d have to agree with this to a point.. most of my tattoos I got where during some very lost distressing times in my life. It was a way of marking it for me.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: monka966 on October 21, 2018, 07:27:58 PM
Depends on what they depict. I know a catholic man from the Middle East who has a tattoo of a cross on the volar side of his right wrist. He got this tattoo when he was a baby.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Nadir on October 21, 2018, 07:46:51 PM
Thank you for sharing that, VW.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Smedley Butler on October 21, 2018, 07:47:30 PM
Tattooing is an ancient pagan practice.


It is NOT licit for Catholics. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 07:52:03 PM
Tattooing is an ancient pagan practice.


It is NOT licit for Catholics.

There's a difference between being illicit and always a mortal sin.

And Christmas trees are also an ancient pagan practice.  As are Easter eggs, or in fact the very word Easter.  Things change over time.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 07:54:49 PM
I’d have to agree with this to a point.. most of my tattoos I got where during some very lost distressing times in my life. It was a way of marking it for me.

Different people have different motivations.  Some get them because they feel unattractive.  Some get them for attention.  Some get them for impure reasons.  Some get them as matters of pride, such as a world War II veteran who has "U.S.M.C." on his upper arm, or an American flag, or a cross.  Some get the old "heart" tattoo with the name of their beloved to indicate that they belong to them.  I know a couple Traditional Catholics who have crosses tattooed on their arms.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 21, 2018, 07:58:43 PM
Depends on what they depict. I know a catholic man from the Middle East who has a tattoo of a cross on the volar side of his right wrist. He got this tattoo when he was a baby.

Maria Regina posted that this was common for Catholics in Muslim regions.

Some posters mentioned that we don't need tattoos because we have the mark of Baptism.  Sure, but that's not a visible mark.  What's wrong with adopting also a visible mark of being Catholic?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 21, 2018, 08:21:17 PM
Different people have different motivations.  Some get them because they feel unattractive.  Some get them for attention.  Some get them for impure reasons.  Some get them as matters of pride, such as a world War II veteran who has "U.S.M.C." on his upper arm, or an American flag, or a cross.  Some get the old "heart" tattoo with the name of their beloved to indicate that they belong to them.  I know a couple Traditional Catholics who have crosses tattooed on their arms.
My husband has a full sleeve tattoo of Michael fighting Satan which I honestly am not sure why he got, and besides it looking cool im not sure he knows either
My brother has a USMC tattoo, and I know there is a reason behind that.
I understand there are reasons people get it that could be good, but Id say most get it to mark a time in your life that hurt them... 
The reason I asked if it’s a sin to continue adding was because I wanted to take a tattoo I got from an extremely abusive relationship, and turn it into a domestic violence awareness tattoo. So, I do know tattoos have meanings for everyone
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Pax Vobis on October 21, 2018, 08:23:08 PM
Take it or leave it, but I wouldn't add anymore ink to your body, even if you're trying to fix a bad tattoo, just for medical reasons.  
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 21, 2018, 08:31:35 PM
Take it or leave it, but I wouldn't add anymore ink to your body, even if you're trying to fix a bad tattoo, just for medical reasons.  
That’s kinda where I’m sitting.. waste of money too.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Nadir on October 21, 2018, 09:17:39 PM
My husband has a full sleeve tattoo of Michael fighting Satan which I honestly am not sure why he got, and besides it looking cool im not sure he knows either
...
The reason I asked if it’s a sin to continue adding was because I wanted to take a tattoo I got from an extremely abusive relationship, and turn it into a domestic violence awareness tattoo. So, I do know tattoos have meanings for everyone
Many of these things are done unconsciously, but St Michael fighting Satan is a sign that your husband desires for Good to defeat evil.  It's just a shame that it's on his arm and not a beautiful painting on your wall. I have a beautiful depiction of St George and the dragon on the wall of my study.
...
I'm pleased to see from your posts after this one that you are decided not to "improve on" that particular tattoo. Believe me, a domestic violence awareness tattoo would be no improvement. Domestic violence awareness is a part of the brainwashing that is being perpetrated on our society. 
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Just use these marks of your past suffering as a reminder that God must love you very much to have enabled you to move out of your painful past.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 21, 2018, 09:32:19 PM
Many of these things are done unconsciously, but St Michael fighting Satan is a sign that your husband desires for Good to defeat evil.  It's just a shame that it's on his arm and not a beautiful painting on your wall. I have a beautiful depiction of St George and the dragon on the wall of my study.
...
I'm pleased to see from your posts after this one that you are decided not to "improve on" that particular tattoo. Believe me, a domestic violence awareness tattoo would be no improvement. Domestic violence awareness is a part of the brainwashing that is being perpetrated on our society.
.
Just use these marks of your past suffering as a reminder that God must love you very much to have enabled you to move out of your painful past.
Don’t want to turn this into a discussion on this thread, but domestic violence is probably the most underrated cause in the US. Every 9 seconds a woman is attacked by a partner. Men are being abused at the same rate, and it’s even worse for them because “oh, your a man and couldn’t fight off a woman?”. It’s not brainwashing... it’s a serious problem that almost got me killed becaue the cops said “oh you don’t hug him enough.” 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Nadir on October 21, 2018, 09:36:46 PM
Yes, not to derail this thread, if you wish to you could make another thread of it. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 21, 2018, 09:49:54 PM
it would come as a surprise to crusaders and pilgrims who got tattooed upon completion of their pilgrimages to the Holy Sites in Jerusalem. Also not just Copts but other eastern Christians receive them and many times especially they are used to show to security at church doors to prove they are faithful church members.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: MMagdala on October 22, 2018, 01:40:00 AM
Maria Regina posted that this was common for Catholics in Muslim regions.

Some posters mentioned that we don't need tattoos because we have the mark of Baptism.  Sure, but that's not a visible mark.  What's wrong with adopting also a visible mark of being Catholic?
Because there's no need to "improve upon" the human body, including the Catholic human body.  If we want to be visible about our faith (many do, rightly so), we can wear crosses around our necks, scapulars, miraculous medals properly blessed.  Etc.  Those are all visible marks of Catholicism, but one is not a better or more convicted Catholic for penetrating one's Catholic identity into the skin.  It's living the invisible mark of Baptism and our Confirmation that gives us the genuine and most persuasive visibility He wants from us.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 22, 2018, 02:44:40 AM
Because there's no need to "improve upon" the human body, including the Catholic human body.  If we want to be visible about our faith (many do, rightly so), we can wear crosses around our necks, scapulars, miraculous medals properly blessed.  Etc.  Those are all visible marks of Catholicism, but one is not a better or more convicted Catholic for penetrating one's Catholic identity into the skin.  It's living the invisible mark of Baptism and our Confirmation that gives us the genuine and most persuasive visibility He wants from us.
Nevertheless, the miraculous medal and the scapular are powerful sacramentals.

When I was attacked by a woman who had told me earlier that she was raised as a child under Russian communism, she used a powerful form of hypnosis on me. She just stared into my eyes and I was rendered powerless. I could not defend myself as she tried to strangle me. My husband yelled and was able to break\the satanic spell, and I was able to get away from her. No doubt, she was a trained agent in order to do that. She had no morals at all.

Immediately after that attack, I called my priest. He asked me if I had worn my miraculous medal that day. I confessed that I had forgotten to put it on after taking my shower.

Wearing the miraculous medal is not a superstition, but instead it is a devout practice asking our Lady to protect us. Many soldiers during WWII told of that metal taking the bullet for them.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 08:23:52 AM
Because there's no need to "improve upon" the human body, including the Catholic human body.  If we want to be visible about our faith (many do, rightly so), we can wear crosses around our necks, scapulars, miraculous medals properly blessed.  Etc.  Those are all visible marks of Catholicism, but one is not a better or more convicted Catholic for penetrating one's Catholic identity into the skin.  It's living the invisible mark of Baptism and our Confirmation that gives us the genuine and most persuasive visibility He wants from us.

Getting a small tattoo of a cross is not mean as an "improvement" to the body, but the imposition of a sign of devotion to Our Lord.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 08:26:36 AM
it would come as a surprise to crusaders and pilgrims who got tattooed upon completion of their pilgrimages to the Holy Sites in Jerusalem. Also not just Copts but other eastern Christians receive them and many times especially they are used to show to security at church doors to prove they are faithful church members.

Ah, yes, but these are all committing mortal sin.   :facepalm:
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Pax Vobis on October 22, 2018, 08:52:28 AM
Quote
Because there's no need to "improve upon" the human body, including the Catholic human body.  If we want to be visible about our faith (many do, rightly so), we can wear crosses around our necks, scapulars, miraculous medals properly blessed.  Etc.  Those are all visible marks of Catholicism, but one is not a better or more convicted Catholic for penetrating one's Catholic identity into the skin.  It's living the invisible mark of Baptism and our Confirmation that gives us the genuine and most persuasive visibility He wants from us.
I guess Our Lady erred when She asked us all to wear the scapular.  I guess the Church errs when She has religious wear habits or cassocks.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: happenby on October 22, 2018, 09:54:18 AM
Getting a small tattoo of a cross is not mean as an "improvement" to the body, but the imposition of a sign of devotion to Our Lord.
Arbitrarily painting a wall with graffiti is defacement even if the painting is religious.  Painting the face of a church is a desecration even if it is a painting of something religious (unless a church authority advised it and then he would put himself in an interesting position).  Paintings belong on secondary medium, not something like the body or a church. Broadcasting pictures of God's creatures on the Vatican was a desecration even though a lot of people imagined it was a beautiful thing.  Permanently painting the body is a desecration of the temple of the Holy Ghost no matter what the content.  The body does not belong to the person running around in it, it belongs to God.  While it seems harmless enough in some instances, where is the reasonable cut-off point unless it is at the beginning?  
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Pax Vobis on October 22, 2018, 10:12:52 AM
Wow, more gross condemnations and anathemas from Happenby.  I’m glad you weren’t part of the Inquisition; there’d be no Catholics left alive. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: happenby on October 22, 2018, 10:18:59 AM
Wow, more gross condemnations and anathemas from Happenby.  I’m glad you weren’t part of the Inquisition; there’d be no Catholics left alive.
I didn't make the condemnations or anathemas, I just believe them.  
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Carissima on October 22, 2018, 11:10:17 AM
Two questions for clarification, and forgive me if not worded correctly:

Is is possible for a Catholic to commit a mortal sin through ignorance?..

If so, then are they fully culpable when they discover it along with the obligation to confess?..
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Pax Vobis on October 22, 2018, 11:27:08 AM
Quote
Is is possible for a Catholic to commit a mortal sin through ignorance?..

Yes, absolutely it's possible because sin, as an offense against God, is independent of our knowledge of the sin.  For example, if a 3 yr old goes around using blasphemous language, his blasphemy is a mortal sin (because the act is a grave offense), even if he is unaware and not guilty.  Blasphemy still offends God, regardless of our knowledge, because evil exists outside of ourselves.


Quote
If so, then are they fully culpable when they discover it along with the obligation to confess?..

In the case of the 3 yr old who blasphemes, of course they would not be required to confess such a thing, even when they made their first confession.  In the case of an adult, who became aware of a mortal sin they did not know about, their guilt for the sin would depend on a variety of factors.  Usually one should confess it at the next opportunity.
One has an obligation to have what's called a "properly formed" conscience, so that we know what is/isn't a mortal sin.  If our conscience is ignorant in many areas, this is in itself a sin of laziness and omission.  So, yes, it's very possible to commit a mortal sin "without full knowledge" if our conscience is ill-formed.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 11:31:20 AM
Arbitrarily painting a wall with graffiti is defacement even if the painting is religious.  Painting the face of a church is a desecration even if it is a painting of something religious (unless a church authority advised it and then he would put himself in an interesting position).  Paintings belong on secondary medium, not something like the body or a church. Broadcasting pictures of God's creatures on the Vatican was a desecration even though a lot of people imagined it was a beautiful thing.  Permanently painting the body is a desecration of the temple of the Holy Ghost no matter what the content.  The body does not belong to the person running around in it, it belongs to God.  While it seems harmless enough in some instances, where is the reasonable cut-off point unless it is at the beginning?  

I see lots of edifying artwork painted onto or etched into the walls (interior and exterior) of churches.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 11:37:56 AM
I disagree ... to a point.  It is not possible to commit a mortal sin without full knowledge and advertence.  Here I distinguish mortal sin from grave sin.  Mortal sin causes the loss of sanctifying grace.  So a 3-year-old child can commit a GRAVE sin but not a mortal sin, because he has not reached the age of reason.  I personally would confess all grave sins I have committed because I can never be sure about the degree of my ignorance and/or culpability.  Even ignorance can be culpable.

Since this is in the context of tattoos, I'm guessing that we're talking about someone who is now convinced that the tattoos he/she received in the past were grave matter but did not consider it such in the past.  I would confess the sin, although some schools of moral theology (such as the probabilist views of St. Alphonsus) would remove the obligation (since there's doubt).  There COULD have been a sufficient degree of culpability in the ignorance, but probabilism would excuse from the obligation to confess if it's not certain that a mortal sin was committed.  Probabilism is also the philosophy suggested for those who have issues with scrupulosity.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 11:42:20 AM
I didn't make the condemnations or anathemas, I just believe them.  

Can you produce Church teaching which states:  "If anyone receives a tattoo, even for reasons of piety and devotion, let him be anathema."?  Or anything from the Church Magisterium or universal Patristic consensus regarding tattoos?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Pax Vobis on October 22, 2018, 11:58:36 AM
Quote
I disagree ... to a point.  It is not possible to commit a mortal sin without full knowledge and advertence.  Here I distinguish mortal sin from grave sin.  Mortal sin causes the loss of sanctifying grace.  So a 3-year-old child can commit a GRAVE sin but not a mortal sin, because he has not reached the age of reason.  I personally would confess all grave sins I have committed because I can never be sure about the degree of my ignorance and/or culpability.  Even ignorance can be culpable.
I've never heard of the difference between grave and mortal - it's all the same.  An act is mortal/grave depending on the act, not depending on the person's knowledge.  Just as truth exists outside of ourselves (and has nothing to do with our knowledge/belief of said truth), so the evil of mortal sin exists outside of ourself, regardless of our knowledge or culpability of it.
I say it is possible for a 3 yr old to commit a moral/grave sin, but they would not be guilty of it.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: MMagdala on October 22, 2018, 12:25:15 PM
Nevertheless, the miraculous medal and the scapular are powerful sacramentals.

Show me where I opposed sacramentals.  Those are external to the body, and I specifically included them in my list.  Again, marking the body does not give one greater protection than prayer, sacramentals, and sanctifying grace.  The Roman Catholic Church has never declared tattoos to be in the category of sacramentals.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: happenby on October 22, 2018, 12:51:50 PM
Can you produce Church teaching which states:  "If anyone receives a tattoo, even for reasons of piety and devotion, let him be anathema."?  Or anything from the Church Magisterium or universal Patristic consensus regarding tattoos?
Of course the Church doesn't say it that way. Scripture explains how people convince themselves that anything they do is good: John 16:2 (http://www.biblica.com/en-us/bible/online-bible/niv/john/16/) "They will put you out of the ѕуηαgσgυє; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God."  People convince themselves that all sorts of things are ok. The Church tells us not to mutilate the body.  You seem to suggest that mutilation is in the eye of the beholder, so, if one likes it, it isn't mutilation.  The Church doesn't qualify it like that. The question coming up now is this: will someone go to hell for tattooing, who didn't know it was wrong?  Perhaps not, if they recovered their lives on other issues and would have been sorry or confessed if they were told about it, and yet were never told.  I assume God knows who is and who isn't sorry for their sins and takes true ignorance into account. But that means their ignorance was not purposeful. This is the reason why people should know before they make a mistake like that and if they have made the mistake, to go to confession.  SSPX priests teach this is how to take care of the problem. This isn't a condemnation, but a call to truthful information and reconciliation with God.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Smedley Butler on October 22, 2018, 12:56:02 PM
There's a difference between being illicit and always a mortal sin.

And Christmas trees are also an ancient pagan practice.  As are Easter eggs, or in fact the very word Easter.  Things change over time.
Ask your priest.
They teach it is a mortal sin. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Smedley Butler on October 22, 2018, 01:06:55 PM
Wow, more gross condemnations and anathemas from Happenby.  I’m glad you weren’t part of the Inquisition; there’d be no Catholics left alive.
All those Mexicans I've seen with a giant Our Lady Of Guadalupe tattoo on their backs are really devout and headed straight to heaven.
/sarcasm
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 03:18:06 PM
I've never heard of the difference between grave and mortal - it's all the same.  An act is mortal/grave depending on the act, not depending on the person's knowledge.  Just as truth exists outside of ourselves (and has nothing to do with our knowledge/belief of said truth), so the evil of mortal sin exists outside of ourself, regardless of our knowledge or culpability of it.

If we do not have knowledge or culpability, then we do not lose sanctifying grace.  It is called mortal precisely for the fact that it extinguishes sanctifying grace.  When speaking of objectively grave matter, the term grave is used rather than mortal.  Someone could perform an objectively grave action that does not extinguish the life of the soul.  Yes, people regularly use these terms loosely and interchangeably but it's important to be precise when discussion the notions theologically.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 03:32:07 PM
Ask your priest.
They teach it is a mortal sin.

If any priest teaches that a small tattoo of a cross, done for the sake of devotion, qualifies as mortal sin, needs to go back to seminary for further education before venturing out among the faithful.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 03:33:07 PM
All those Mexicans I've seen with a giant Our Lady Of Guadalupe tattoo on their backs are really devout and headed straight to heaven.
/sarcasm

Nobody said that. /StupidArgument
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 03:36:12 PM
The Church tells us not to mutilate the body.

I don't even think it's been established that coloring the skin qualifies at "mutilation".  Do women who color their hair also commit mortal sin?  How about women who wear earrings?  Aren't they in fact mutilating themselves?  In that case, 98% of all Traditional Catholic women are damned.  Heck, I probably shouldn't cut my hair or trim my nails either ... for fear of hellfire.  I've probably been doomed since the age of 12 when my appendix was been removed, since mutiliation is never acceptable even for medical reasons.

:facepalm:
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 22, 2018, 03:39:44 PM
Nevertheless, the miraculous medal and the scapular are powerful sacramentals.

When I was attacked by a woman who had told me earlier that she was raised as a child under Russian communism, she used a powerful form of hypnosis on me. She just stared into my eyes and I was rendered powerless. I could not defend myself as she tried to strangle me. My husband yelled and was able to break\the satanic spell, and I was able to get away from her. No doubt, she was a trained agent in order to do that. She had no morals at all.

Immediately after that attack, I called my priest. He asked me if I had worn my miraculous medal that day. I confessed that I had forgotten to put it on after taking my shower.

Wearing the miraculous medal is not a superstition, but instead it is a devout practice asking our Lady to protect us. Many soldiers during WWII told of that metal taking the bullet for them.
That’s a crazy story  :o
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 03:55:11 PM
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/blog/what-the-early-church-had-to-say-about-tattoos


Here's one quote from a Council in England ... held in A.D. 787.

Quote
When an individual undergoes the ordeal of tattooing for the sake of God, he is greatly praised. But one who submits himself to be tattooed for superstitious reasons in the manner of the heathens will derive no benefit there from.


Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: happenby on October 22, 2018, 04:00:32 PM
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/blog/what-the-early-church-had-to-say-about-tattoos


Here's one quote from a Council in England ... held in A.D. 787.
A few sentences later on this same page...
St Basil the Great famously preached in the 4th century:
Quote
“No man shall let his hair grow long or tattoo himself as do the heathen, those apostles of Satan who make themselves despicable by indulging in lewd and lascivious thoughts. Do not associate with those who mark themselves with thorns and needles so that their blood flows to the earth."
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 04:00:57 PM
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/holy-tattoo-a-700-year-old-christian-tradition-thrives-in-jerusalem-68723


Quote
The first evidence of a Christian tattoo tradition traces back to the Holy Land and Egypt as early as the 6th or 7th Century. From there, the tradition spread throughout Eastern Christian communities such as the Ethiopian, Armenian, Syriac and Maronite Churches. To this day, many Coptic Churches require a tattoo of a cross or other proof of Christian faith to enter a church. (Tattoo traditions among groups such as Celtic and Croatian Catholics emerged separately and at a later date.)

With the advent of the Crusades beginning in 1095, the existing practice of tattooing pilgrims to the Holy Land expanded to the European visitors. Numerous accounts dating back to the 1600s describe Christian pilgrims taking part in already long-existing customs of receiving a tattoo upon completing a visit to the Holy City – a custom that survives to this day.


Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Pax Vobis on October 22, 2018, 05:18:00 PM
Quote
If we do not have knowledge or culpability, then we do not lose sanctifying grace.  It is called mortal precisely for the fact that it extinguishes sanctifying grace.  When speaking of objectively grave matter, the term grave is used rather than mortal.  Someone could perform an objectively grave action that does not extinguish the life of the soul.  Yes, people regularly use these terms loosely and interchangeably but it's important to be precise when discussion the notions theologically.
Good points. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 22, 2018, 05:53:34 PM
A few sentences later on this same page...
St Basil the Great famously preached in the 4th century:

He's clearly talking about some superstitious pagan practices.  And I knew you would latch on to that paragraph because you have bad will on this issue.  If you read it consistently with the other paragraph, the section which states:
Quote
But one who submits himself to be tattooed for superstitious reasons in the manner of the heathens will derive no benefit there from.

... then there's nothing inconsistent between the two.

You filter out the evidence based on your confirmation bias.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 22, 2018, 09:14:04 PM
I disagree ... to a point.  It is not possible to commit a mortal sin without full knowledge and advertence.  Here I distinguish mortal sin from grave sin.  Mortal sin causes the loss of sanctifying grace.  So a 3-year-old child can commit a GRAVE sin but not a mortal sin, because he has not reached the age of reason.  I personally would confess all grave sins I have committed because I can never be sure about the degree of my ignorance and/or culpability.  Even ignorance can be culpable.

Since this is in the context of tattoos, I'm guessing that we're talking about someone who is now convinced that the tattoos he/she received in the past were grave matter but did not consider it such in the past.  I would confess the sin, although some schools of moral theology (such as the probabilist views of St. Alphonsus) would remove the obligation (since there's doubt).  There COULD have been a sufficient degree of culpability in the ignorance, but probabilism would excuse from the obligation to confess if it's not certain that a mortal sin was committed.  Probabilism is also the philosophy suggested for those who have issues with scrupulosity.

Did not Our Lady of Fatima say that there are many people in Hell, including children as young as two and three?
.
Did not St. Therese of Liseau say that she had reached the age of reason by three years of age?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Vintagewife3 on October 22, 2018, 09:22:42 PM
Did not Our Lady of Fatima say that there are many people in Hell, including children as young as two and three?
.
Did not St. Therese of Liseau say that she had reached the age of reason by three years of age?
But then why don’t kids go to confession at that age...? It doesn’t make sense God would condemn kids that young...
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: RoughAshlar on October 22, 2018, 09:29:33 PM
Did not Our Lady of Fatima say that there are many people in Hell, including children as young as two and three?
.
Did not St. Therese of Liseau say that she had reached the age of reason by three years of age?
Can you provide a link to that quote from Fatima?  Never heard that or thought that the Church taught that?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 22, 2018, 11:08:45 PM
Can you provide a link to that quote from Fatima?  Never heard that or thought that the Church taught that?
I think it was in a Fatima Crusader, but that was long ago.
.
My priest has told me that he has heard the confessions of children as young as three. He interviews them carefully to insure that they know what they are doing, that they make their confession willingly, and that they are not under pressure from parents, siblings, or teachers to do so. He has told me: if a child is aware of his own sinfulness and wants to confess his sins, let him do so, especially if that child may have committed a mortal sin.

What harm can a holy confession do?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Cantarella on October 22, 2018, 11:20:01 PM
Did not Our Lady of Fatima say that there are many people in Hell, including children as young as two and three?
.
Did not St. Therese of Liseau say that she had reached the age of reason by three years of age?

Children under the age of reason would be in Hell because they are unbaptized; not because they are accountable for a mortal sin.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Student of Qi on October 22, 2018, 11:23:10 PM
In support of Ladislaus I would like to drop in my two cents:

Was it not St. Catherine of Sienna who BRANDED a cross with Jesus's Name over her breast to show she belonged to no one else? She's a Saint now, so ya gonna contest her canonization over it?? It would sure count as mutilation/disfigurement and probably even tattooing (though sans the ink?).

I know, I know, next someone's gonna interject "But SoQ, she's a woman and probably wasn't thinking!" Or "But she's a saint and we aren't", etc. :facepalm:

 I might get a small cross on my wrist or chest like our Eastern brothers in the distant future as well. I've thought of it before and wanted it, even though I personally don't like tattoos. I do approve of them as branding though, I don't think something small and inconspicuous is a bad thing as long as it is to identify you as being part of a tribe/clan/army/Catholic, it should have a functional purpose.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Student of Qi on October 22, 2018, 11:28:33 PM
Can you provide a link to that quote from Fatima?  Never heard that or thought that the Church taught that?
Same, I never heard of that in the Fatima message. 
And the norm is that children reach the age of reason around the age of 7, which is usually why they don't make their First Communion before that time. There are always exceptions to the rules. I sometimes think I was a bit late... Anyways, Matthew has used that phrase so many times around here: "The exception proves the rule".
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 23, 2018, 09:38:01 AM
Well, certainly, it's not as if a person instantly and magically reaches the "age of reason" on his 7th birthday.  That's just a rule of thumb laid down by the Church.  I commend the priest mentioned on this thread who was hearing the Confessions of children younger than 7 ... on a case-by-case basis.  I also believe that some children should be admitted to Holy Communion before the age of 7.  I don't agree with the Eastern custom of letting even 2-year-olds receive Communion because they have no idea that what they're doing is different than eating a snack at home, and that's wrong.

I believe that it would be a very extraordinary thing for a child under the age of 7 to be capable of committing a mortal sin; my general feeling is that they would have to be closer to 9 or 10 in most cases.  This does not mean that they are not capable of reason TO AN EXTENT.  This is probably true from the age of 3 or 4 up.  But to be able to sufficiently and fully understand the nature of grave sin and to deliberately will it, I suspect that very few children under 7 would be capable of it.

I don't like the phrase "reach the age of reason".  There's no magical "age of reason", but a gradual progression to reason.  If there's an "age of reason", the expression means, rather, the age that the Church uses as a rule of thumb for a child having attained a degree of reasoning sufficient to commit grave sin.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: MMagdala on October 23, 2018, 11:13:06 AM
I believe that it would be a very extraordinary thing for a child under the age of 7 to be capable of committing a mortal sin; my general feeling is that they would have to be closer to 9 or 10 in most cases.  This does not mean that they are not capable of reason TO AN EXTENT.  This is probably true from the age of 3 or 4 up.  But to be able to sufficiently and fully understand the nature of grave sin and to deliberately will it, I suspect that very few children under 7 would be capable of it.

I don't like the phrase "reach the age of reason".  There's no magical "age of reason", but a gradual progression to reason.  If there's an "age of reason", the expression means, rather, the age that the Church uses as a rule of thumb for a child having attained a degree of reasoning sufficient to commit grave sin.
Regarding the first paragraph:
When grave evil presents itself in a very young child, it would most likely be the work of demonic possession.  Fr. Ripperger explains this in his many sermons about demonic influence.  He has seen it in children as young as 2, maybe even younger.  (I'd have to re-listen to the audio tapes on those.)

Regarding the second paragraph:
Correct.  It's a progression, not a chronological date.  With the growing consciousness of the child, regarding effects of doing evil, regarding responsibility and decision-making -- much of this on the experiential level even more than the intellectual level -- comes the gradual cohesion of all of that, so that by age 7-ish, most children will have reached the point where they know the difference between deliberate wrongdoing, unwilled hurt, accidents, etc.  And they will have enough of a relationship with their own fathers that they can internalize the importance of a right relationship with their Heavenly Father.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 23, 2018, 03:35:22 PM
Actually Ladislaus, easterners commune from birth, the exception is the most latinized like maronites.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: aryzia on October 23, 2018, 03:59:34 PM
The fact that tattoos are far more common on the bodies of those who blaspheme and live lives of sin proves to me that tatoos are to be avoided. Even small ones. A little wrong is never right. Living life in a way sinners live cannot be good. The church's recommendations keep us separate and clean. Making a case for uncleaness? Why?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 23, 2018, 06:38:38 PM
You also should know that pagan practice was to actually create a physical scarring well beyond just a tattoo, their tattoos were actually carved in the flesh not just inking the skin. To compare a small cross to physical scarring(which is what is described in scripture) is a stretch
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Maria Regina on October 23, 2018, 07:17:08 PM
Actually Ladislaus, easterners commune from birth, the exception is the most latinized like maronites.
Also, some Eastern Catholic infants will refuse Holy Communion. This is especially true when these toddlers are in their terrible twos.
Many  priests have said that these toddlers seen to know that they should not receive Holy Communion, so the priest does not force it upon them even though concerned parents may insist. The babes in arms will shake their heads, utter "no," and then close their mouths very tightly.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Nadir on October 23, 2018, 07:45:50 PM
You also should know that pagan practice was to actually create a physical scarring well beyond just a tattoo, their tattoos were actually carved in the flesh not just inking the skin. 
Like so: https://australianmuseum.net.au/aboriginal-scarification


Quote
To compare a small cross to physical scarring(which is what is described in scripture) is a stretch
It sure is a stretch.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 24, 2018, 08:43:26 AM
Actually Ladislaus, easterners commune from birth, the exception is the most latinized like maronites.

Yes, i know that.  And I actually have no issue with an infant receiving Holy Communion, provided every precaution is taken to prevent spilling the Blessed Sacrament, so as to receive the graces of the Sacrament ex opere operato.  I have more of an issue with the toddlers, who prance up there giving every indication that they cannot distinguish Holy Communion from any other snack they would have at home.  That I find incredibly disedifying and in contradiction to the teaching of St. Paul that people must "discern" the Body and Blood of Christ (i.e. clearly distinguish it from regular food).

Maronites actually also administer Holy Communion at infant Baptism.  But perhaps they discontinue it thereafter.  And I would agree with that.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 24, 2018, 12:31:15 PM
Understand the feeling about toddlers but have never experienced it, usually they are carried or if not behaving are removed from church. The canons require Latins to commune all eastern children who approach the rail though. Will find a brochure and post it if I can remember where it is. Again unless Orthodox children are accompanied to communion.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 24, 2018, 01:28:23 PM
Understand the feeling about toddlers but have never experienced it, usually they are carried or if not behaving are removed from church. The canons require Latins to commune all eastern children who approach the rail though. Will find a brochure and post it if I can remember where it is. Again unless Orthodox children are accompanied to communion.

I'm not speaking of ill-behaved children only.  Rare are the children who until they're at least about 4-5 have any understanding of what it is that they are actually doing.  I do not agree with the Eastern custom to commune toddlers.  I do not agree either with essentially requiring a child to wait until 7 either.  I believe that these should be on a case-by-case basis.  If the priest interviews the child and gets a sense for a decent understanding of what they're doing at Holy Communion, they should be admitted.  But if they have a decent understanding of what is taking place, then they should be going to Confession also.  Eastern Rites wait until the "age of reason" for Confession but then admit them all and sundry to Communion.  Both should happen at the same time, but not necessarily the age of 7.  I've known some children who would in my mind qualify by the age of 4 or 5.  But these 2 to 3 year olds are the problem.  Not to mention that most of them basically start sucking on and licking the spoon.  Most of my older kids are "grossed out" by having to receive Communion after one of the toddlers who's done that.  My son serves at a Ukrainian Liturgy and holds the cloth at Communion and watches all these kids suck on and lick the spoon, and it's hard for him to receive at the end because part of him is disgusted.  You should never go to Communion with any sense of disgust that you might be ingesting someone else's saliva.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 24, 2018, 02:13:42 PM
Wow, never seen that but I tend to be at oriental liturgies where communion is by intinction, or is dropped in the mouth by the priests fingers. The Ukrainian church I occasionally attend has large loaves, they would be more likely to choke than lick the spoon for which they would be reprimanded. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 24, 2018, 02:24:57 PM
Actually Ladislaus, easterners commune from birth, the exception is the most latinized like maronites.
Eastern Catholic churches were required to conform to Latin Rite practice of no communion for infants till they had reached the proper age, till Vatican II, the false council, changed everything. Therefore, any Eastern Catholic that is allowing their infants to receive communion, is following Vatican II church. Moreover, Catholics were not allowed to switch rites at their own pleasure like many Catholics do today, that too is a Vatican II thing. Both are following a false council because it suits them.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 24, 2018, 02:33:00 PM
Eastern Catholic churches were required to conform to Latin Rite practice of no communion for infants till they had reached the proper age, till Vatican II, the false council, changed everything. Therefore, any Eastern Catholic that is allowing their infants to receive communion, is following Vatican II church. Moreover, Catholics were not allowed to switch rites at their own pleasure like many Catholics do today, that too is a Vatican II thing. Both are following a false council because it suits them.

I have heard that they had gone back and forth on this particular question over the centuries.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Mithrandylan on October 24, 2018, 02:46:35 PM
Eastern Catholic churches were required to conform to Latin Rite practice of no communion for infants till they had reached the proper age, till Vatican II, the false council, changed everything. Therefore, any Eastern Catholic that is allowing their infants to receive communion, is following Vatican II church. Moreover, Catholics were not allowed to switch rites at their own pleasure like many Catholics do today, that too is a Vatican II thing. Both are following a false council because it suits them.
.
I would be interested to see this proved.  I see that Wikipedia says this, but provides no sources, and is a bit editorialized on the point.  The 1917 CIC literally opens by asserting that the code does not affect Eastern disciplines except where it does by its very nature or by explicit mention.  Which would lead me to suspect that it doesn't tell the Eastern Churches one thing or another regarding infant communion; maybe something else does, but not the CIC.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 24, 2018, 03:38:16 PM
Theoretically, I'm in favor of Holy Communion for infants and those who have not reached the age of reason.  They can receive an increase in sanctifying grace ex opere operato if they are in a state of grace, and the presumption is that they are until they have reached the age of reason.  I've just seen a fair bit of the abuse, as I described earlier, that's extremely disedifying and disrespectful to the Blessed Sacrament in the practical order.  Perhaps additional regulations need to be in place to govern the practice.  I've also seen a good amount of mis-handling of the Communion cloth that's used in lieu of a metal paten, so much so that one Byzantine priest I knew abandoned the cloth and used a paten.  This cloth is supposed to catch fragments of the Blessed Sacrament, but then it's handled roughly and badly as soon as Communion ends so that most of the particles so caught would be scattered everywhere.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 24, 2018, 03:43:43 PM
Overall, I like the Catholic Eastern Rites, but I've seen a fair bit of "sloppiness" that needs to be corrected.  Also, Eastern Catholics rarely go to Confession, so much so that one Ukrainian priest preaches about and promotes Confession nearly every week ... to no avail.  There's a prayer everyone recites before Communion that is kind of an Act of Contrition, and I have this feeling that most people think it renders them worthy to receive even if they're not in a state of grace.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 24, 2018, 05:07:40 PM
In the Antiochian tradition confession is required during the fasts. ie: Nineveh, Great Lent, Apostles Fast, Soonyno ( Assumption) fast and Christmas Fast. Many eastern catholics have spiritual fathers who do not belong to the parishes. Also as particular to Antiochian tradition we do have an actual absolution as part of the liturgy( which Rome permits) ie: Maronites on Holy Saturday. This absolution would of course not be valid for those of Latin or Constantinoples faithful per existing canons. The Indian Orthodox publish that confession is needed so non attendance at confession seems to be a result of Rome being lax since it is the most influential church still.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 24, 2018, 06:20:07 PM
The notion of not changing rites is an erroneous notion about Benedict XIV encyclical, it was about Catholic faithful living in greek areas of Italy and Greece who were attending ORTHODOX services and attempting to change Churches because of an accord between Rome and Greece that did not have anything to do with intercommunion. Latins were using the accord and good will to gain favor of the locals and pretending they were able to attend Orthodox services without prejudice without getting Roman approval giving the appearance that you could change to Orthodoxy. This is why the encyclical was written. It is true that traditionally that easterners were forbidden to join the Latin Church by Leo XIII because of the small numbers of Eastern Catholics
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 24, 2018, 06:43:03 PM
The notion of not changing rites is an erroneous notion about Benedict XIV encyclical, it was about Catholic faithful living in greek areas of Italy and Greece who were attending ORTHODOX services and attempting to change Churches because of an accord between Rome and Greece that did not have anything to do with intercommunion. Latins were using the accord and good will to gain favor of the locals and pretending they were able to attend Orthodox services without prejudice without getting Roman approval giving the appearance that you could change to Orthodoxy. This is why the encyclical was written. It is true that traditionally that easterners were forbidden to join the Latin Church by Leo XIII because of the small numbers of Eastern Catholics
I think you are winging just about everything you write, since few here know anything about Eastern Rites. Latin Rite Catholics would have had to get special permission from their bishop to switch rites, say if they were moving somewhere where there was no other choice. It rarely happened. 

"In the country of blind men, the one eyed man is a king". .
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 24, 2018, 06:49:32 PM
…. Eastern Catholics rarely go to Confession, so much so that one Ukrainian priest preaches about and promotes Confession nearly every week ... to no avail.  
It is called sacrilege, it is also a practice in the counterfeit Vatican II church.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 24, 2018, 08:07:11 PM
I think you are winging just about everything you write, since few here know anything about Eastern Rites. Latin Rite Catholics would have had to get special permission from their bishop to switch rites, say if they were moving somewhere where there was no other choice. It rarely happened.

"In the country of blind men, the one eyed man is a king". .

Yes, you needed permission to formally/canonically switch Rites, but you could assist at an Eastern Rite Liturgy whenever you felt inclined to, and vice versa.  It was more readily granted to switch from Latin to Eastern (in the West at least), since the Eastern Catholics were in such a minority.  Other way was much more difficult, since the Latin Rite did not want to cannibalize the Eastern Rite Catholics.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 24, 2018, 08:08:16 PM
It is called sacrilege, it is also a practice in the counterfeit Vatican II church.

I suspect that this goes back to long before Vatican II in the Eastern Rites.  I believe that it's more due to poor catechesis regarding the Sacraments.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 24, 2018, 11:00:42 PM
Not winging it, spent the last 30 years alternating attendance at Eastern Liturgies, and after three years of Traditional Monastic formation, decided that the ancient Antiochian traditions were the closest thing to traditional monasticism still in existence. :)
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 24, 2018, 11:09:22 PM
It is due to poor catechism. Eastern churches are set up in the old country in such a way that all events take place around the Church so usually catechism became mostly un needed, in the diaspora it is a big problem. I know of two divorced persons who told me that had they been at home the priests would have explained things to them, but they got no advice in the US. When they went home to the Mother country the priests explained how horrible their divorce was, now they have such regrets.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 25, 2018, 07:26:24 PM
Not winging it, spent the last 30 years alternating attendance at Eastern Liturgies, and after three years of Traditional Monastic formation, decided that the ancient Antiochian traditions were the closest thing to traditional monasticism still in existence. :)
Are you a Catholic?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 25, 2018, 07:34:45 PM
I suspect that this goes back to long before Vatican II in the Eastern Rites.  I believe that it's more due to poor catechesis regarding the Sacraments.
This is basic stuff, going to communion in a state of mortal sin is sacrilege. I think the Eastern clergy have been for centuries too busy keeping their wives happy to have time to think about such "trivial things" such as sacrilege,  the age of reason,  marriage for life..... The Eastern religions are a just a cultural thing.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 25, 2018, 08:15:19 PM
This is basic stuff, going to communion in a state of mortal sin is sacrilege. I think the Eastern clergy have been for centuries too busy keeping their wives happy to have time to think about such "trivial things" such as sacrilege,  the age of reason,  marriage for life..... The Eastern religions are a just a cultural thing.

First of all, these are not Eastern "religions", but legitimate CATHOLIC Liturgical Traditions.  Poor catechesis has nothing to do with the fact that they allow priests to marry.  As for your "marriage for life" comment, you're confusing them with the Orthodox.  No, the Eastern Rites are not merely "cultural" things.  Being as ignorant as you are about them, you sure act like you know it all and can sit in condemnation of them.  If you don't have a clear concept of what constitutes mortal sin, and the difference between Sacramental absolution and the minor absolution one receives at Mass, it's easy to get confused.  It's basic stuff for someone who has been taught to regurgitate the Baltimore Catechism, but not so basic if you never went to any kind of Catechism.  Eastern thinking tends to be more abstract, and they don't appear to be very good at clearly defining concepts the way we do in the West due to the scholastic theological movement.  They never really had a scholastic period where the emphasis was on being precise in your terms and definitions.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 25, 2018, 08:22:49 PM
This is basic stuff, going to communion in a state of mortal sin is sacrilege.

So what things are and what things aren't mortal sin?  In the West we have lists of sins and categories.  For a lot of these people, due to lack of catechesis along those lines, they just think of mortal sin as "extremely serious stuff".  I would bet that 99% don't understand or believe that impure thoughts are sins.  And where does one draw the line between an involuntary impure thought (temptation) and actual consent?  I would't be surprised to find that most people don't think anything short of impure desires constitutes mortal sin ... if that.  There are probably people who limit mortal sins to things like murder, grand theft, and adultery/fornication.  If you take gravely sinful thoughts out of the equation, the requirement to Confess drops by like 99.5%.  None of this stuff is obvious if you haven't been catechised properly.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 26, 2018, 07:15:35 AM
It's basic stuff for someone who has been taught to regurgitate the Baltimore Catechism, but not so basic if you never went to any kind of Catechism.  Eastern thinking tends to be more abstract, and they don't appear to be very good at clearly defining concepts the way we do in the West due to the scholastic theological movement.  They never really had a scholastic period where the emphasis was on being precise in your terms and definitions.
You are talking to a public school educated person who was basically never catechized.  I don't even remember ever going to Sunday school for 1st communion, all I remember is the nice white suit and arm band and hair cut, and I only remember that because I have a picture. Then there was my Confirmation at 13, I learned nothing there either, we were 6 wild public school boys in the Sunday school class, and all we did was throw things at each other, our teacher was a layman. When the bishop came, we were put together with the Catholic school class of like 30 students and we hid in the back and never had to answer a question. I learned NOTHING, and that Confirmation  was 2 years before the Novus Ordo. I lived my life in the world for the first 40 years with no knowledge of "concepts" as you call it. I stopped going to mass shortly after my confirmation, at like 14. I had zero learning and yet I knew not to go to communion whenever I went to many many weddings or funerals during the next 26 years. I knew that if I did, God work strike me down and turn me into a piece of fried bacon. How is it possible that an Easter Catholic person who goes to mass every Sunday all their lives never learned something so basic?

You are making excuses for them, their faith is just a cultural thing, no different today than any South American.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 26, 2018, 07:34:20 AM
By the way, in my experience, knowledge does not just come from "going to catechism", it first comes from listening to God's voice. When we die, we will see that all we did was maybe lean 1/1,000,000 toward Him and he gave us everything else. The problem is just that man wants to do things their way. It is very convenient not to "know".
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Pax Vobis on October 26, 2018, 07:52:45 AM
Quote
None of this stuff is obvious if you haven't been catechised properly.
We have an obligation to have a well-formed conscience.  If we do not, we will be judged on our sinful omission.  Also, impure thoughts would be known to be wrong by the heart/conscience just because of the natural law.  When one is a teenager and they encounter such temptations for the first time, you know such things are wrong.  A faulty conscience due to poor catechesis is not a complete excuse, but just partially.

Quote
You are making excuses for them, their faith is just a cultural thing, no different today than any South American.
Agree.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 26, 2018, 08:02:05 AM
We have an obligation to have a well-formed conscience.  If we do not, we will be judged on our sinful omission.  Also, impure thoughts would be known to be wrong by the heart/conscience just because of the natural law.  When one is a teenager and they encounter such temptations for the first time, you know such things are wrong.  A faulty conscience due to poor catechesis is not a complete excuse, but just partially.

One can sense from natural law that impure thoughts are wrong, but their classification as "mortal" sin is not evident from natural law, and requires catechesis.  Depending on the principles applied, one could conclude that impure actions are mortal, while impure thoughts are venial.  In fact, I've known a lot of people to whom it came as a very big surprise that thoughts could be mortally sinful.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 26, 2018, 08:15:15 AM
You are making excuses for them, their faith is just a cultural thing, no different today than any South American.

What an arrogant, judgmental blowhard you are.  I doubt you even know any Eastern Catholics.  Of course you'll find some "cultural" Catholics in any cross-section, but this is by no means limited to the Eastern Rite.  Even in the Roman Rite, you'll find many whose faith is mostly cultural:  Irish, Hungarians, Polish, etc.  This is by no means unique to the Eastern Rites.  Yet in all these groups there are also many who take their faith seriously.  There's nothing to prevent the faith from being both religious AND cultural.  In fact, that's IDEAL, that our society and culture should be thoroughly imbued with the faith.  And it's the same in the Eastern Rites; there are good, bad, and lukewarm in every group, even among Traditional Catholics.  You on the other hand never allow anyone to have any excuse.  Be very careful, since when you die you're going to be judged with the same judgment that you yourself applied towards others, and I'd be very afraid to be in your shoes at your judgment.  So, while knowing next to nothing about them, you presume to dismiss all those in the Eastern "religions" as cultural Catholics.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Pax Vobis on October 26, 2018, 08:59:21 AM
Quote
It is due to poor catechism. Eastern churches are set up in the old country in such a way that all events take place around the Church so usually catechism became mostly un needed, in the diaspora it is a big problem. I know of two divorced persons who told me that had they been at home the priests would have explained things to them, but they got no advice in the US. When they went home to the Mother country the priests explained how horrible their divorce was, now they have such regrets.
As Confederate Catholic points out, the Eastern Catholics rely on their Churches/priests moreso than we do in the West.  So poor catechesis is why they don't know better.  Ok, fine, but if they don't realize that they are dependent upon their priests for guidance, then they must be pretty obtuse.

And in the above example, assuming the Eastern priests gave them all kinds of marriage preparation, how do they not know the weight of their marriage VOWS?  How did they not know divorce wasn't wrong?  I don't buy this.  Marriage as a lifetime committment has been culturally/globally-wide since the beginning of time.  If they truly "didn't get it", then they must've been partially retarded.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 26, 2018, 09:50:23 AM
Quote
Last Tradhican wrote: You are making excuses for them, their faith is just a cultural thing, no different today than any South American.

Your entire posting is one continuous straw man, my quick comments below. You should ask questions before you make such leaps. 


What an arrogant, judgmental blowhard you are.  I doubt you even know any Eastern Catholics.  Of course you'll find some "cultural" Catholics in any cross-section, but this is by no means limited to the Eastern Rite.  Even in the Roman Rite, you'll find many whose faith is mostly cultural:  Irish, Hungarians, Polish, etc. (that extension should be obvious in my saying that they are no different than any South American today.)  This is by no means unique to the Eastern Rites (I never said it was unique to them, again, it should be obvious that I extended it to the Spanish, Irish, Hungarians, Polish, Italians.... ).  Yet in all these groups there are also many who take their faith seriously (If there weren't, there would be no Catholics left in the world) .  There's nothing to prevent the faith from being both religious AND cultural (another strawman).  In fact, that's IDEAL, that our society and culture should be thoroughly imbued with the faith (is that supposed to be some kind of .  And it's the same in the Eastern Rites; there are good, bad, and lukewarm in every group, even among Traditional Catholics.  You on the other hand never allow anyone to have any excuse (strawman).  Be very careful, since when you die you're going to be judged with the same judgment that you yourself applied towards others, and I'd be very afraid to be in your shoes at your judgment.  So, while knowing next to nothing about them, you presume to dismiss all those in the Eastern "religions" as cultural Catholics.

I only responded because I respect the writer, He should think or ask questions before undertaking to waste both our times
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 26, 2018, 09:54:44 AM
It is due to poor catechism.

Overall, I like the Catholic Eastern Rites, but I've seen a fair bit of "sloppiness" that needs to be corrected.  Also, Eastern Catholics rarely go to Confession, so much so that one Ukrainian priest preaches about and promotes Confession nearly every week ... to no avail.  There's a prayer everyone recites before Communion that is kind of an Act of Contrition, and I have this feeling that most people think it renders them worthy to receive even if they're not in a state of grace.
Here is an example posted by you that directly contradicts your poor catechesis theory and confirms what I stated that it is very convenient "not to know". 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Last Tradhican on October 26, 2018, 03:27:02 PM
Overall, I like the Catholic Eastern Rites, but I've seen a fair bit of "sloppiness" that needs to be corrected.  Also, Eastern Catholics rarely go to Confession, so much so that one Ukrainian priest preaches about and promotes Confession nearly every week ... to no avail. There's a prayer everyone recites before Communion that is kind of an Act of Contrition, and I have this feeling that most people think it renders them worthy to receive even if they're not in a state of grace.
What about abortion and birth control? Are they also lax on that? Did you see children? My old aunt ended going to a Melkite Catholic church because it was next door to her home. Prectically everyone there was Latin Rite Catholic. They had no week day mass, only Sundays. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 26, 2018, 03:40:00 PM
What about abortion and birth control? Are they also lax on that? Did you see children? My old aunt ended going to a Melkite Catholic church because it was next door to her home. Prectically everyone there was Latin Rite Catholic. They had no week day mass, only Sundays.

No, they are not lax on abortion and birth control.  Lots of older couples whose kids are mostly grown up and moved out.  For the relatively few younger couples that I've seen, there are children there, in what appear to be decent numbers.  Are they using NFP?  Probably.  But then Traditional Catholics do also.  Yes, lots of Latin Rite refugees after Vatican II to the Eastern Rites.  Some Eastern Rite parishes have more weekday Masses than others.  At the Ukrainian Cathedral near Cleveland, for a while, they had FIVE weekday Masses every morning:  7:00 AM, 7:30 AM, 8:00 AM, 8:30 AM, and 9:00 AM.  Weekday Masses are more difficult for most Eastern Rites because they generally don't have a "Low" Mass and therefore are always in need of a choir.  Ukrainian Rite has Westernized some and do have a Low/Recited Mass, so they have more weekday Masses.  Ukrainian Rite also have confessionals, whereas most Eastern Rites have penitents confess at the front of the church in front of an icon.  I wonder if that isn't a deterrent to confession right there.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: confederate catholic on October 26, 2018, 05:26:41 PM
They were married in the US by Latin priests since the state had no eastern church, which by the canons invalidated it anyway
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 26, 2018, 08:31:27 PM
And in the above example, assuming the Eastern priests gave them all kinds of marriage preparation, how do they not know the weight of their marriage VOWS?  How did they not know divorce wasn't wrong?  I don't buy this.  Marriage as a lifetime committment has been culturally/globally-wide since the beginning of time.  If they truly "didn't get it", then they must've been partially retarded.

Well, unfortunately, there's too much intermingling between Eastern Rite Catholics and their Orthodox counterparts, and the Orthodox believe that people can be divorced twice, married three times.  I'm guessing that perhaps they heard something along those lines from their Orthodox counterparts.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 26, 2018, 08:32:51 PM
Here is an example posted by you that directly contradicts your poor catechesis theory and confirms what I stated that it is very convenient "not to know".

No, this priest encourages Confession, but at no point has he ever spoken of why it's necessary, and under what conditions (i.e mortal sin).  I'll have to bring that to his attention.  I've noticed a severe lack of theological "precision" among Eastern Rite Catholics, including their clergy.  On the other hand, this same priest gave a terrific sermon denouncing the notion that people can be saved by sincerity without Christ and outside the Church.  He spoke more strongly on this subject than I had ever heard from any non-Feeneyite Traditional priest.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Stanley N on October 26, 2018, 10:08:45 PM
Yes, lots of Latin Rite refugees after Vatican II to the Eastern Rites. 
It can go the other way, too. I saw a Ukrainian church get so fed up with a liberal N.O. biritual priest that several families started going to the "unapproved" Latin Mass in the area. The Ukrainian families went back when the Ukrainian church got a new Byzantine-trained priest.

This thread has strayed from the initial topic. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on October 27, 2018, 11:21:30 AM
This thread has strayed from the initial topic.

Ya think?  :laugh1:

Yes, it got into the Eastern Rites due to several mentions of tattoos being commonly used by Eastern Rite Christians in Muslim territories.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: RoughAshlar on October 27, 2018, 11:43:12 AM
I though it was because someone claimed their priest said that Our Lady of Fatima said that 2 and 3 year olds go to hell.  This transitioned into a discussion of sacrament being administered to the very young.  It was a good discussion on the age of reason though.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Cera on October 27, 2018, 11:48:52 AM
I though it was because someone claimed their priest said that Our Lady of Fatima said that 2 and 3 year olds go to hell.  This transitioned into a discussion of sacrament being administered to the very young.  It was a good discussion on the age of reason though.
Our Lady never said any such thing
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: RoughAshlar on October 27, 2018, 11:54:21 AM
Our Lady never said any such thing
I know, that's why I asked for proof of that statement
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: RoughAshlar on October 27, 2018, 11:56:20 AM
Did not Our Lady of Fatima say that there are many people in Hell, including children as young as two and three?
.
Did not St. Therese of Liseau say that she had reached the age of reason by three years of age?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Hermes on August 26, 2021, 09:52:54 AM
Church Father & theologian St. Basil the Great wrote:

“No man shall let his hair grow long or tattoo himself as do the heathen, those apostles of Satan who make themselves despicable by indulging in lewd and lascivious thoughts. Do not associate with those who mark themselves with thorns and needles so that their blood flows to the earth.”

More importantly, in 787 a canon of the Second Council of Nicea banned all tattoos as a “pagan practice.” There has been no overturning of this disciplinary canon by the Church that I am aware of.

Also interestingly:

The Emperor Constantine I banned tattoos on the face in 316 AD reasoning that “man has been created in the image of God and to so defile the face is to disgrace the Divine.”
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Hermes on August 26, 2021, 10:19:31 AM
As to whether it is intrinsically immoral then I don’t think the evidence goes so far.

I think it was a disciplinary measure that was instituted by the Church during a time in which the Church was still in a heavily pagan environment. Many ancient pagan societies considered tattooing a form of worship or dedication to false gods.

The discipline forbidding tattoos fell into disregard historically. Many saints are said to have had tattoos, especially in Western Europe, without censure from the Church.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: MMagdala on August 26, 2021, 10:54:23 AM
Is there a valid Catholic reason why, in the 20th or 21st centuries, any Catholic not living in a Muslim country can justify choosing to get a tattoo?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Durango77 on August 26, 2021, 01:12:41 PM
Is there a valid Catholic reason why, in the 20th or 21st centuries, any Catholic not living in a Muslim country can justify choosing to get a tattoo?
There is also a certain amount of risk in getting a tattoo, disease, reaction, they degrade over time amd stretch with the skin, I would think unless you had a really good reason, why do it?  Maybe to like fix an old one and turn it into some type of devotional picture I would think would be good.  
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Carissima on August 26, 2021, 03:05:29 PM
I’ve never been tattooed but several of my brothers have.
Knowing we are Temples of the Holy Ghost I’ve said to my children that getting a tattoo on your body would be like decorating the Tabernacle at church with spray paint.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: DigitalLogos on August 26, 2021, 04:13:04 PM
I have one tattoo on my calf from my pre-Catholic days and my wife has many. As I've grown older I've found them to be repugnant and I really don't get why staining your skin with an image that is relevant to a specific moment in time is a good idea.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: JOANORCM on August 26, 2021, 05:30:07 PM
My daughter's boyfriend has a tattoo on his forearm stating he is a Type1 diabetic.  His mom suggested it so that when he goes into diabetic shock and is in the ER unable to speak, medical professionals know why.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Yeti on August 26, 2021, 08:16:58 PM
Since when are tattoos a mortal sin??! Who is this crazy man?
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Limoges on August 26, 2021, 08:18:07 PM
I don't have any tattoos.
Context matters here, which the OP grossly fails to understand.
Some tattoos can be a mortal sin, while others are not a sin.
My opinion is that tattoos reveal a worldly spirit to some degree, and there is nothing really original or creative about them. They're permanent human cattle tags identifying worldly spirits of persons at the time they received the tattoos, but that doesn't mean they're still that way. There are sincere converts to Catholicism who were previously neo-pagans with tats.

When I see Gen X, Millennials and younger with a bunch of tattoos, I see a walking joke.
The old school bikers with tattoos, yeah, they were the real deal but still caught up in the wrong spirit.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Marion on August 26, 2021, 08:28:23 PM
The question should be, whether Tattoos are grave matter, or are per se grave matter, but not whether "Tattoos are a mortal sin".
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Quo vadis Domine on August 26, 2021, 08:44:43 PM
My daughter's boyfriend has a tattoo on his forearm stating he is a Type1 diabetic.  His mom suggested it so that when he goes into diabetic shock and is in the ER unable to speak, medical professionals know why.
People with health issues used to wear a bracelet that indicated what the issue was, fortunately it was easily removed. 
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Nadir on August 26, 2021, 08:47:18 PM
Is there a valid Catholic reason why, in the 20th or 21st centuries, any Catholic not living in a Muslim country can justify choosing to get a tattoo?
My daughter's boyfriend has a tattoo on his forearm stating he is a Type1 diabetic.  His mom suggested it so that when he goes into diabetic shock and is in the ER unable to speak, medical professionals know why.
Here you have answered a question that was also in my mind.
In Rome I met a lovely coptic lady who had a small cross tattooed on her forehead.
Also some young Lebanese men, at least here in Oz, proudly display tattoos which show their allegiance to Jesus.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Nadir on August 26, 2021, 08:55:54 PM
And in NZ https://www.newzealand.com/au/feature/ta-moko-maori-tattoo/

THE MEANING OF TĀ MOKO, TRADITIONAL MĀORI TATTOOS
(https://www.newzealand.com/assets/Campaigns/FY-20-Campaigns/FY20-Brand-Welcome/GMW-Still-Assets/Job1689_Tnz_Hikurangi_Mc_0675_Final_HR__aWxvdmVrZWxseQo_FocalPointCropWzQyMCw5NjAsNTAsNTAsNzUsImpwZyIsNjUsMi41XQ.jpg)

Mount Hikurangi, Eastland, Tairawh


Tā moko – the art of Māori tattoo – is a unique expression of cultural heritage and identity.

In Māori culture (https://www.newzealand.com/au/maori-culture/), it reflects the individual's whakapapa (ancestry) and personal history. In earlier times it was an important signifier of social rank, knowledge, skill and eligibility to marry.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Marion on August 26, 2021, 09:02:59 PM
And in NZ https://www.newzealand.com/au/feature/ta-moko-maori-tattoo/

THE MEANING OF TĀ MOKO, TRADITIONAL MĀORI TATTOOS
(https://www.newzealand.com/assets/Campaigns/FY-20-Campaigns/FY20-Brand-Welcome/GMW-Still-Assets/Job1689_Tnz_Hikurangi_Mc_0675_Final_HR__aWxvdmVrZWxseQo_FocalPointCropWzQyMCw5NjAsNTAsNTAsNzUsImpwZyIsNjUsMi41XQ.jpg)

Mount Hikurangi, Eastland, Tairawh


Tā moko – the art of Māori tattoo – is a unique expression of cultural heritage and identity.

In Māori culture (https://www.newzealand.com/au/maori-culture/), it reflects the individual's whakapapa (ancestry) and personal history. In earlier times it was an important signifier of social rank, knowledge, skill and eligibility to marry.

Montini surely would have loved such praise of man and his personal history.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: SimpleMan on August 26, 2021, 10:56:17 PM
I don't like tattoos, I seriously doubt I would ever get one, but given that there are probable opinions either pro or con (mostly con), I cannot categorically condemn getting one.  Tattoos for purely medical purposes, such as a "Medic Alert"-type tattoo for diabetes, epilepsy, pacemaker, and so on, I can't see those as a problem (uniformity would be nice, so EMTs would know precisely where to look), and I also like the idea in the German military (IIRC during WWII) of tattooing a soldier's blood type under his arm (again, one uniform place).  I've also heard of putting a very small tattoo on the feet of identical twins, a small dot or something, to be able to tell them apart, especially useful for caregivers.  It could be placed inconspicuously so that it would be barely noticeable later in life.  I could get behind that too.  But a tattoo just for the sake of having one?  I'll pass.

Piercings seem unproblematical, in that they will gradually "heal up" if the Jєωelry, brad, etc., is removed and left out for a time.  So they're not permanent mutilations.  But I don't have any of those either, and would not want one.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Stubborn on August 27, 2021, 05:28:02 AM
The question should be, whether Tattoos are grave matter, or are per se grave matter, but not whether "Tattoos are a mortal sin".
Typically, speaking particularly of tattoos these days, getting oneself tattooed is a matter of exploiting one's own vanity by calling attention too or showing off their body or parts of their body, regardless of whatever other reason one uses for getting one.

By nature we are all subject to vanity, which is pride, perhaps excessive pride, but we are not supposed to give into it. It is for this reason primarily that so many (not all) people these days, who "give in" and finally make the decision to get only one small tattoo, end up getting more and more. They do this in order to feed their pride, and often they don't even realize that that's what they're doing.  

Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: JOANORCM on August 27, 2021, 05:57:05 AM
People with health issues used to wear a bracelet that indicated what the issue was, fortunately it was easily removed.
He has a metal allergy hence the tattoo.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: PAT317 on August 27, 2021, 07:05:16 AM
I have never met a Trad priest who did not teach that getting tattoed is a mortsl sin.
I have never met one who said that a small tattoo was a mortal sin.
I have never met one who has spoken on the issue.  
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Ladislaus on August 27, 2021, 07:30:28 AM
Yeah, I'm not just seeing it.  Based on what principle of moral theology is any tattoo grave matter?  I could see the gross excesses that some people go to, due to disfigurement of the body ... along with those gross piercings.  But to make an analogy with piercing, I can't see how a woman piercing her ears for some earrings would be grave matter, whereas those bizarre tongue piercings and nose piercings definitely cross a line.  I would think it's the same for a tattoo.  If it doesn't grossly disfigure the body, I can't imagine a principle of moral theology that would make it grave matter or even venial matter.  And probably some tattoos would be serious depending on what they were.  But a small cross tattooed on someone's upper arm, for instance, I just can't see it.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: Matto on August 27, 2021, 10:04:14 AM
Tattoos were forbidden in Leviticus. Don't know if that still applies under the new law like sodomy, or if it is like eating pork, no longer sinful. I always thought they were still sinful, but I know I could be wrong. I have heard that some Christians got religious tattoos, possibly Maronites or Copts, to identify themselves as Christians, and this was considered okay.
Title: Re: Tattoos are a mortal sin
Post by: SimpleMan on August 27, 2021, 10:23:35 AM
Yeah, I'm not just seeing it.  Based on what principle of moral theology is any tattoo grave matter?  I could see the gross excesses that some people go to, due to disfigurement of the body ... along with those gross piercings.  But to make an analogy with piercing, I can't see how a woman piercing her ears for some earrings would be grave matter, whereas those bizarre tongue piercings and nose piercings definitely cross a line.  I would think it's the same for a tattoo.  If it doesn't grossly disfigure the body, I can't imagine a principle of moral theology that would make it grave matter or even venial matter.  And probably some tattoos would be serious depending on what they were.  But a small cross tattooed on someone's upper arm, for instance, I just can't see it.
With piercings, it would be more a potential sin against modesty (in this case, adorning oneself flamboyantly and gratuitously, not a question of sɛҳuąƖ impurity), and a sin of pride and vanity (again, the flamboyance and "look at me!" factor, in the case of exaggerated and too-numerous piercings, or piercings in outrageous places), than a mutilation of the Temple of the Holy Ghost.  As I said above, piercings will heal back up in short order, if you leave them alone and don't put anything back through them.  The piercing, all by itself, is probably so trivial, as to be no sin at all.  Ultimately, I would defer to a traditional Catholic priest on that last point.