What Is the Greater Sin?

Dear Dennis,

In reference to your “Smoking or Cheating?” article, usually I agree with you, but this time I cannot (at least not completely).

We can always rationalize or minimize our sins. Is smoking a greater evil than cheating, or is alcoholism greater than anger? It is difficult for me to judge. I believe that they are definitely different and always wrong. They can be venial or mortal sins. It depends.

The circumstances related to every sin needs to be understood by the sinner. God alone is the ultimate Judge.

Is tobacco or alcohol an intrinsic evil? I would say no. The actions and results associated with smoking, drinking, and cheating can be evil.

Does killing or hurting oneself with tobacco or alcohol, which it is not “simply” or “merely” unhealthy but against the 5th Commandment, surpass the sin of cheating, which is against 7th Commandment? I am not in a position to judge. The values that I carry and communicate to my children say that they are both wrong. It is not a tradeoff.

I believe that our actions do tell “us something about a person's character”. It is by our actions that we let each other know something about ourselves. It would be difficult to measure a person's character by how they feel or what they thought.

I have taught my children that cheating or destroying one's body, and hurting others or self are always wrong and a sin.

You are correct; we live in an “Age of Moral Confusion” and moral relativism.

We abort our children and are more concerned with the treatment of animals. We accept adultery and homosexuality and ridicule fidelity to family and Church. We put ourselves at the center of the universe and dismiss God from our schools and our lives. We try to minimize our own sins and maximize others.

Per Aquinas “pride is said to be the beginning of every sin”, may we all seek humility in self through Our Lord Jesus Christ.

In Christ,

Bob O'Meara

Nashua, NH

***

Mr. Prager,

Although I agree with you that our society has some serious moral misconceptions, I was very disappointed in your conclusion that smoking and tobacco usage has somehow gotten a bad rap.

What you failed to concede was that tobacco addiction can be just as dangerous as alcohol abuse. Smoking not only can cause cancer and other diseases in the user, but also potentially causes cancer in those living with the user. My four-year-old niece cries often for the grandmother she'll never know. She died before she was 50 years old of lung cancer because her father was a prolific smoker. Sounds like a moral problem to me.

As followers of Christ, we should not be controlled or dependent upon any substances. Maybe you think you can control it…my father-in-law thought so, too. He quit smoking a year ago after he finally realized after 60 years that he was an addict. His usage was escalating, and he couldn't control it. He still yearns for cigarettes every day, and feels as if

he's lost something dear to him. I wish he would yearn for Christ the way he desires nicotine.

Discouraging tobacco usage is not just about health, it's about who's in control. Anything that takes (or has the potential to take) the place of God in our lives is very much a moral issue.

Thank you,

Ellen Amarante

***

Dear Catholic Exchange:

While Mary Kochan's response to Mr. Martin accusations was more than sufficient, I thought the following quotes from Our Holy Father and Bishops were quite pertinent:

“It is impossible to further the common good without acknowledging and

defending the right to life, upon which all the other inalienable rights of individuals are founded and from which they develop.” (Pope John Paul II, The Gospel of Life)

“Catholic public officials are obliged to address each of these issues as they seek to build consistent policies which promote respect for the human person at all stages of life. But being 'right' in such matters can never

excuse a wrong choice regarding direct attacks on innocent human life. Indeed, the failure to protect and defend life in its most vulnerable stages renders suspect any claims to the 'rightness' of positions in other matters affecting the poorest and least powerful of the human community.” (US Bishops, Living the Gospel of Life: A Challenge to American Catholics)

“Above all, the common outcry, which is justly made on behalf of human rights &#0151 for example, the right to health, to home, to work, to family, to culture &#0151 is false and illusory if the right to life, the most basic and fundamental right and the condition of all other personal rights, is not defended with maximum determination.” (US Bishops, Living the Gospel of Life: A Challenge to American Catholics)

“Every human person is created in the image and likeness of God. The conviction that human life is sacred and that each person has inherent dignity that must be respected in society lies at the heart of Catholic social teaching. Calls to advance human rights are illusions if the right to life itself is subject to attack. We believe that every human life is sacred from conception to natural death; that people are more important than things; and that the measure of every institution is whether or not it enhances the life and dignity of the human person.” (US Catholic Bishops, Faithful Citizenship: Civic Responsibility for a New Millennium)

Jon Shoemaker

Columbia, Maryland

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