- priest P. Gumerov
- I. Ya. Grits
How is mortal sin different from ordinary sin?
The distinction between mortal and non-mortal sins is very conditional, for every sin, be it small or great, separates a person from God, the source of life, and the person who sinned inevitably dies, although not immediately after the fall. This is clear from the Bible, from the story of the fall of the ancestors of the human race, Adam and Eve. It was not a great sin (by today’s standards) to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree, but through this sin both Eve and Adam died, and to this day everyone dies...
In addition, in the modern understanding, when they talk about “mortal” sin, they mean that a grave mortal sin kills a person’s soul in the sense that it becomes incapable of communion with God until it repents and leaves this sin. Such sins include murder, fornication, all inhuman cruelty, blasphemy, heresy, occultism and magic, etc.
But even insignificant, small “non-mortal” sins can kill the soul of a sinner, deprive it of communication with God, when a person does not repent of them, and they lie a great burden on the soul. For example, one grain of sand is not a burden to us, but if a whole bag of them accumulates, then this load will crush us.
What is a mortal sin?
What is a mortal sin and how does it differ from other “non-mortal” sins? If you are guilty of a mortal sin and sincerely repent of it in confession, will God forgive this sin through the priest or not? And I also want to know: those sins that you repented of with all your soul and heart in confession, and the priest forgave these sins, if you don’t commit them again, God will not judge you for them?
Priest Dionysius Tolstov answers:
When a person utters such a phrase as “mortal sin,” then immediately, according to the logic of thinking, one wants to ask the question: what is an unmortal sin? The division of sins into mortal and non-mortal is only a convention. In fact, any sin is mortal, any sin is the beginning of destruction. The saint lists eight deadly sins (see also below). But these eight sins are only a classification of all possible sins that a person can commit; these are like eight groups into which they are all divided. indicates that the cause of all sins and their source lies in three passions: selfishness, voluptuousness and love of money. But, however, these three vices do not cover the entire abyss of sins - these are only the initial conditions of sinfulness. It’s the same with those eight deadly sins – it’s a classification. Every sin must be healed by repentance. If a person has brought sincere repentance for his sins, then, of course, God will forgive him his confessed sins. This is precisely what confession is for. “Repent and believe the gospel,” says the beginning of the Gospel of Mark. A person will not be condemned for a repentant sin. “There is no unforgivable sin except unrepentant sin,” say the Holy Fathers. God, out of his inexpressible love for the human race, established the sacrament of confession. And when we begin the sacrament of repentance, we must firmly believe that God will forgive all our sins. The saint said: “Repentant fornicators are imputed with virgins.” This is the power of repentance!
Hieromonk Job (Gumerov):
“Just as illnesses can be ordinary and fatal, so sins can be less or more serious, that is, mortal... Mortal sins destroy a person’s love for God and make a person dead to perceive Divine grace. A serious sin traumatizes the soul so much that it is then very difficult for it to return to its normal state.
“The expression “mortal sin” has its basis in the words of St. Apostle John the Theologian (). The Greek text says pro fanon- a sin that leads to death. By death we mean spiritual death, which deprives a person of eternal bliss in the Kingdom of Heaven.”
priest Georgy Kochetkov
In the Old Testament, a number of crimes were punishable by death. This is where the concept of mortal sin arose, that is, an act the consequence of which is death. Moreover, no crime worthy of death can be forgiven or replaced by a ransom (), that is, a person cannot change his fate even by repentance. This approach arose from the conviction that a person can perform a number of actions only if he has long been out of touch with the Source of Life or, more precisely, draws inspiration from an alien source. In other words, if a person commits a mortal sin, it means that he has violated the Covenant and supports his life through the destruction of the surrounding world and people. Thus, a mortal sin is not just a crime, which, according to law, is punishable by death, but also a certain statement of the fact that the person who commits such an act is already internally dead and must be put to rest so that living members of the community do not suffer from it . Of course, from the point of view of secular humanism, such an approach is very cruel, but such a view of life and man is alien to biblical consciousness. We must not forget that in Old Testament times there was no other way to stop the spread of grave sin among the people of God than when the bearer of death was subjected to the death penalty.
saint:
“The mortal sins for a Christian are the following: heresy, schism, blasphemy, apostasy, sorcery, despair, suicide, fornication, adultery, unnatural fornication, incest, drunkenness, sacrilege, homicide, robbery, theft and any cruel, inhuman offense.
Only one of these sins cannot be healed, but each of them mortifies the soul and makes it incapable of eternal bliss until it cleanses itself with satisfactory repentance...
Let him who has fallen into mortal sin not fall into despair! Let him resort to the medicine of repentance, to which he is called until the last minute of his life by the Savior, who proclaimed in the Holy Gospel: he who believes in Me, even if he dies, will live (
Many people know that there are certain sins in Orthodoxy. But many do not know what exactly is meant by the word “sin,” and they forget about many acts that are considered sinful.
Sins in Orthodoxy
The classification of sins is based on the Ten Commandments and biblical texts. Regardless of religion, the following actions are considered sinful. Moreover, people who realize that they are doing wrong, but continue to do so, can become obsessed.
The most terrible sins in Orthodoxy (mortal)
1. Pride, i.e. recognition of oneself as equal to God, excessive narcissism and immeasurable pride.
2. Envy, jealousy and vanity.
3. Anger and revenge.
4. Laziness, despondency, despair, careless attitude towards life, idleness.
5. Greed, stinginess, greed, love of money.
6. Gluttony, gluttony.
7. Voluptuousness, lust, fornication, dissolute life.
Sins in Orthodoxy against God
Such acts include failure to fulfill the will of God, failure to observe the commandments, lack of faith or excessive hope for help, lack of gratitude to God, hypocritical veneration, superstition (including fortune telling and appeals to various clairvoyants). If you want to sin less, do not mention the name of God unless necessary, keep your vows, do not complain or blaspheme the Lord, read the Scriptures and do not be ashamed of your faith. Go to church regularly and pray from your heart. Stay in church during the entire service, honor all the holidays of God. Thoughts of suicide and promiscuity in sexual activity are also considered sinful.
Sins in Orthodoxy against one's neighbor
Sins in Orthodoxy: a list of sins against oneself
You shouldn’t honor yourself too much and admire yourself. Be humble, be obedient. Don't envy and don't lie - it's sinful. Also, do not throw words to the wind and do not talk about empty things. Irritation, resentment, melancholy and laziness are considered sins. Also, you should not do good deeds for the sake of recognition. Take care of your health, but don't make it a priority. Avoid alcohol too. You should not gamble or study pornographic products. Also, drive away lustful thoughts from yourself, do not cheat and do not have sex outside of marriage. And here we are talking specifically about the wedding, because... The stamp in the passport "does not count".
This is not a complete list of sins, but getting rid of these activities can make life more joyful and improve your relationships with others.
- What is sin? After all, most of Christian life is spent in the struggle with sin; the concept of sin is one of the central ones. How can you define it?The most precise and succinct definition of sin is given in the New Testament: “sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4). The Holy Apostle John the Theologian calls any violation of the Divine law sin. If we do not comply with the laws of existence established by God, the laws of the spiritual world, then we harm ourselves and others. Also, neglecting the laws of the physical world, if they have already been studied and known, is a sin. Remember the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Of course, people who grossly disregarded technological requirements based on the laws of the physical world committed a sin from which tens of thousands of people suffered. We can turn to other examples: by violating environmental laws, we harm not only our health, but also the health of others. As we see, the definition of sin given in the Holy Scriptures is universal: not only the rejection of spiritual and moral laws given by God, but also natural ones, causes harm to people.
Why are the laws established for the benefit of man not obvious? And if they are obvious, then why does he still constantly want to break them?
Human nature was damaged after the Fall. There are many indications of this disposition to sin in the Holy Bible. The Lord said to Cain: “Sin lies at the door; he draws you to himself, but you must rule over him” (Gen. 4:6-7). According to the patristic interpretation, the words “at the door” mean at the door of the heart. I will cite another passage from Holy Scripture. St. Apostle Paul, on behalf of all humanity, speaks about the duality of our nature: “I delight in the law of God according to the inner man; But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me captive to the law of sin that is in my members” (Rom. 7:22-23).
The laws of God are obvious to those who have maintained purity of heart from youth. In a person infected with sinful habits, the eyes of the soul are clouded. And some, having fallen in love with sin, brought themselves to moral blindness. They do not consider even the most flagrant violation of the commandments a sin.
There is an expression “deadly sins” - what is it? Are there less or more serious sins? How is this severity determined?
Just as illnesses can be common and fatal, so sins can be less or more serious, that is, mortal. These include: deliberate falling away from the faith, hatred and malice towards people (“he who does not love his brother remains in death”; 1 John 3:14), murder, violence, fornication. The Holy Apostle Paul has mortal sins in mind when he lists those who are deprived of eternal life: “neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor wicked people, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners - They will not inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor. 6:9-10). Mortal sins destroy a person’s love for God and make a person dead to perceive Divine grace. A serious sin traumatizes the soul so much that it is then very difficult for it to return to its normal state.
- So is sin a fault or a disease?
Both. From the point of view of our duty to our Creator, sin is an offense, a crime. And from the point of view, the state of the soul is a disease, since the one who commits sin falls away from the Source of Life. His soul is sick. She is not capable of a full spiritual life.
Just as violation of natural laws is dangerous for our body, which is part of the physical world, so any serious sin injures the soul. It’s just that the harm from some sins is obvious, but not from others. Let's take for example the sin of fornication. When people lead a sexual life that is not legalized by marriage, they pervert the Divine plan for a grace-filled life union, reducing it to a sensual-physiological beginning and discarding the spiritual and social goals of marriage. Experienced mentors know that fornication, like acid, corrodes the moral fabric of the soul. Just as physical illnesses undermine the health of the body, even if it is possible to avoid death with the help of doctors, so sins undermine the health of the soul.
- Catholics have a doctrine of the seven deadly sins. Is it significant for Orthodox Christians too?
The doctrine of mortal sins was formed not among Catholics, but in patristics.
When they say “seven deadly sins,” they mean passions: pride, envy, gluttony, fornication, anger, greed, despondency. The number seven expresses a certain degree of completeness. The works of most of the ascetic holy fathers speak of eight destructive passions. Rev. John Cassian the Roman, calling them vices, lists them in the following order: gluttony, fornication, love of money, anger, sadness, despondency, vanity and pride. Some people, when talking about the seven deadly sins, combine despondency and sadness. They are called mortal because they can (if they completely take possession of a person) disrupt spiritual life, deprive them of salvation and lead to eternal death.
The most dangerous passion is pride. It can expel any virtue from a person and even lead a person to open fight against God. Only one who has gotten rid of the mother of all passions - selfishness - can become a spiritually full-blooded Christian. Selfishness is absolutely incompatible with the spirit of Christianity.
Why do we, when we pray, ask God to help us see our sins? The vision of these sins gives us suffering and gives rise to remorse. What's the point of this?
After all, we pray not only to see our sins, but at the same time we ask God to strengthen our determination to leave these sinful habits and skills. True repentance must always be combined with hope, that is: if we trust God, then even a perfect vision of our sins will not cause in our souls the suffering and despondency that you are talking about. If, after realizing his sins, a person becomes despondent, this means he suffers from a lack of faith, this means that he has a narrow and distorted concept of God. He did not know His boundless mercy and love.
Sincere confession revives the soul with Divine grace, which is given in this sacrament. And as Bishop Ignatius (Brianchaninov) notes: “Consolation from God destroys the sadness of the heart at its root - in the dark thoughts of hopelessness.” “This consolation brings a person good and humble thoughts of submission to God, thoughts full of living faith and meek, sweet hope.”
-If suffering is a punishment for sin, why do the innocent suffer?
From the time the Fall occurred and human nature was damaged, suffering entered the life of mankind. Both the sinful and the righteous suffer. The former suffer for their sins and iniquities, the latter in order to unite with the Lord. For followers of the Savior, sorrows serve to complete purification, just as gold is purified from impurities in fire. Sorrows and illnesses are a cure for sinful passions. The holy fathers often wrote about this: “The flesh is afflicted so that the soul can be healed.”
- What is the mechanism of such purification? Why does a person cleanse himself when he feels bad?
Tribulation, first of all, crushes the main source of sin - pride and arrogance. Only in the soul of a humble person can faith be born and strengthen. An unbeliever is unable to comprehend the meaning of the words of St. Apostle Paul: “I take comfort in weaknesses, in insults, in needs, in persecutions, in oppressions for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:10). These words will seem paradoxical to him. They do not know that he who endures sorrows with thanksgiving receives grace from the Lord, which leads him to a state of bliss.
- But there are people who suffer a lot, but do not get better. Why doesn't their suffering purify them?
Suffering is only salutary when a person endures it in a Christian manner. People who live without God, on the contrary, often become embittered.
In addition, there are people who, it seems, do not suffer at all, but sin a lot. It turns out that God does not want to cleanse them? Why is there no suffering for those who need it most?
God loves everyone and wants everyone to be saved. But he knows everything hidden in everyone’s soul. He knows in advance how a person will perceive the suffering sent to him: some will stop sinning and begin to correct themselves, while others will become embittered. Such people will add even more terrible ones to their existing sins: grumbling and blasphemy against God. In hell, torment corresponds to the severity of crimes. Therefore, if trials are sent to such sinners, their future fate will be even more painful. The Lord even loves sinners and does not want them to increase their punishments.
- Why does God allow man to sin at all? Isn't he omnipotent?
The Lord created man in His image and likeness, and one of the properties of the image of God is free will. With this, God especially honored man and distinguished him from the circle of other creations. Free will inevitably presupposes freedom of choice, which by definition already includes the possibility of committing a sin. If a person was created as a mechanical toy with a program embedded in him to do only the right thing, then he would not have any merit.
The fight against sin: where to start?
It is believed that one can be a decent and highly moral person without the Church. There is secular ethics... Is it really necessary to have the Church in order not to sin?
Let us remember our definition of sin: sin is a transgression of the Divine commandments. But to fulfill these commandments, good manners and adherence to ethical standards are not enough. This requires grace. Grace is the spiritual power emanating from God that cleanses and revitalizes the human soul. Among people far from spiritual life, there were and are people who strictly observe the moral standards accepted in society, but this does not mean that they are sinless; they are often infected, for example, with such dangerous sins as pride and ambition.
- Without Divine help, a person cannot cope only with pride or with any sin in general?
We should not consider a person’s sinful habits in isolation; all sinful passions in a person are intertwined and grow together. We can say that these are invisible shackles with which the soul is entangled, and each link is connected to the other. Centuries of experience convince us that it is impossible to lead a spiritual life without the help of God. And without this, a person cannot be morally perfect.
- The fight against sin: where to start? What should be the approach?
The Monk Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain advises starting the fight with the main passion: “Enter your heart with attention,” he writes, “and examine carefully what thoughts... and passions it is especially occupied with and what passion most dominates it.” Against this passion, first of all, you need to take up arms , this is what you should try to overcome: “With one exception, that when another passion arises by chance, then you should immediately take care of it and drive it away,” writes the elder.
- How to understand which passion is the main one? Can you explain with an example?
Any person who has the goal of getting rid of sinful habits has a good experience of what hinders him the most. One has a strong desire for the constant satisfaction of his highly developed ambition, the other is captive of sensual pleasures, and so on.
- First, you need to fight the most inveterate passion or the one that leads to the most serious sins?
With mortal sins, a person must, without delay, begin the most decisive and merciless struggle. Otherwise, you can lose eternal life, because no one knows the day of his death. The Monk Isaac the Syrian says that victory over passion requires a feat: “When, out of love for God, you want to accomplish some deed, set death as the limit of this desire; and thus, in fact, you will be worthy to ascend to the level of martyrdom in the fight against every passion and you will not suffer any harm from what meets you within this limit, if you endure to the end and do not weaken” (Ascetic Words. Homily 38). To eradicate sinful habits, sacrifice and persistent spiritual work are required from a person. Then all-powerful help and healing of the soul comes from the Lord.
A person’s entire life is permeated with sin; it seems that a person living in the world cannot help but sin. How to be? Renounce the world? It turns out that since we are not ascetic monks, it means that we will not be saved? How can a Christian live in such a world when sin surrounds us on all sides?
According to St. Apostle John the Theologian “the whole world lies in evil” (1 John 5:19). In our century, evil has multiplied enormously, but man is not fatally dependent on the vices of his society. The image of God in him and conscience, like a heavenly voice in the soul, provide enough moral freedom to demonstrate righteousness in any era.
It's hard, but not hopeless! The Holy Fathers write that salvation is possible both in the world and in the monastery. Let us remember how Saint Anthony the Great, after 70 years of asceticism, was told from above that he had not reached the spiritual level of a shoemaker from Alexandria, and Saint Macarius the Great that he “has not yet reached such perfection in a virtuous life as two women living in the nearest city." I know happy families with well-mannered children. They kept themselves pure, and on a good foundation, in turn, built prosperous families. The Word of God teaches us to refrain from despondency and despair. In any era, a person is born with free will and is not fatally dependent on the vices of his society. The image of God in him and conscience, like a heavenly voice in the soul, give him enough freedom to refrain from the sin that has spread around him. “Do everything without complaining or doubting, so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without blame in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine as lights in the world, containing the word of life” (Philippians 2:14-16).
Elder Paisius the Svyatogorets claims that if the head of a family loves God, then he can be very successful spiritually: “Such a person endows his children with virtues, and receives a double reward from God.” Everyone can be saved, because nothing is impossible for God. Do you remember the story about the prudent robber? At the last moment of his life, he accomplished three feats that made him a man worthy of the Kingdom of Heaven. A feat of faith: the Pharisees and lawyers knew by heart all the prophecies about the Messiah, they saw the miracles that the Lord performed, but they did not believe in Him. And the thief, hanging on the cross, next to the mocked, humiliated, beaten Christ, believed that it was God!
The second feat is a feat of love. When a person has severe unbearable pain, he focuses only on it. At this moment, he is of little interest in the affairs of other people. Such a person is irritated and angry by everything. And the thief, hanging on the cross (we can imagine what terrible torment it was), found within himself the inner strength to have compassion for the Savior. When the second thief began to blaspheme Christ, he interceded and showed pity not for himself, but for another person: “we are justly condemned, because we received what was worthy of our deeds, but He did nothing bad” (Luke 23:41). And the third feat that the prudent robber accomplished was the feat of hope. Knowing that he had only a few hours of life left, he had such great hope that he boldly asked God: “Remember me, Lord, when You come into Your Kingdom!” (Luke 23:42). Even in less difficult situations, we often despair, doubt: “whether we will be saved or not”... These three feats: faith, hope and love healed and revived his soul. They allowed him to shed the weight of his terrible sinful past. But how, by what miracle, did this robber, in such a painful state, turn out to be capable of such feats? This is a huge mystery for us, but for God nothing is impossible.
Interviewed by Dmitry Rebrov
Often using the word “sin” in his vocabulary, he does not always fully understand its interpretation. As a result, the term is used for other purposes, gradually losing its true content. Nowadays, sin is perceived as something forbidden, but at the same time attractive. Having committed it, people boast, proud of their act in the “bad boy” style, gaining popularity and a scandalous reputation with its help. Such individuals do not realize: in fact, even the slightest sins in Orthodoxy are something for which each of us will suffer heavy and eternal punishment after death.
What is sin?
Religion interprets it differently. It is usually believed that sins in Orthodoxy are states of the human soul that are diametrically opposed to morality and honor. By committing them, he goes against his true nature. The famous theologian John of Damascus, who lived in Syria in the 7th century, for example, wrote that sin is always a voluntary deviation from spiritual rules. That is, it is almost impossible to force a person to do something immoral. Yes, of course, he can be threatened with weapons or reprisals against his loved ones. But the Bible says that even in the face of real danger, he always has the right to choose. Sin is a wound that a believer inflicts on his own soul.
According to another theologian, Alexei Osipov, any offense is a consequence of the fall of mankind. However, unlike original wickedness, in the modern world we take full responsibility for our mistakes. Each individual is obliged to fight the craving for the forbidden, to overcome it by all means, the best of which, as Orthodoxy claims, is confession. The list of sins, their immoral content and retribution for what they have done - teachers are required to talk about this even in elementary grades during theology lessons, so that children from an early age understand the essence of this evil and know how to fight it. In addition to sincere confession, another way to atone for one’s own immorality is sincere repentance, prayer and a complete change in the way of life. The Church believes that without the help of priests it is not always possible to overcome sinfulness, therefore a person should regularly visit the temple and communicate with his spiritual mentor.
Deadly sins
These are the most serious human vices, which can only be redeemed through repentance. Moreover, this must be done exclusively from the heart: if an individual doubts that he will be able to live in accordance with the new spiritual rules, then it is better to postpone this process until the moment when the soul is completely ready. In another case, confession is considered evil, and lying can be punished even more. The Bible states that for mortal sins the soul is deprived of the opportunity to go to heaven. If they are very heavy and terrible, then the only place that “shines” for a person after death is hell with its pitch darkness, hot frying pans, seething fiery cauldrons and other devilish paraphernalia. If the offenses are isolated and accompanied by repentance, the soul goes to purgatory, where it gets a chance to cleanse itself and reunite with God.
How many especially serious offenses does religion provide for? It is known that when analyzing mortal sins, Orthodoxy always gives a different list. In various versions of the Gospel you can find a list of 7, 8 or 10 points. But traditionally it is believed that there are only seven of them:
- Pride is contempt for one's neighbor. Leads to darkening of the mind and heart, denial of God and loss of love for him.
- Greed or love of money. This is the desire to acquire wealth in any way, which gives rise to theft and cruelty.
- Fornication is adultery itself or thoughts about it.
- Envy is the desire for luxury. Leads to hypocrisy and humiliation of one's neighbor.
- Gluttony. Shows excessive self-love.
- Anger - thoughts of revenge, anger and aggression, which can lead to murder.
- Laziness, which gives rise to despondency, sadness, sorrow and murmuring.
These are the main mortal sins. Orthodoxy never modifies the list, since it believes that there is no greater evil than the above-described vices. After all, they are the starting point for all other sins, including murder, assault, theft, and so on.
Pride
This is too high a person's self-esteem. He begins to consider himself the best and most worthy. It is clear that it is necessary to develop individuality, unusual abilities and genius talents. But placing one’s “I” on an unjustified pedestal of honor is real pride. Sin leads to an inadequate assessment of oneself and making other fatal mistakes in life.
It differs from ordinary pride in that a person begins to boast of his qualities before God himself. He develops the confidence that he himself is capable of achieving heights without the help of the Almighty, and his talents are not a gift from Heaven, but exclusively personal merit. The individual becomes arrogant, ungrateful, arrogant, inattentive to others.
In many religions, sin is considered the mother of all other vices. And indeed it is. A person affected by this spiritual illness begins to adore himself, which leads to laziness and gluttony. In addition, he despises everyone around him, which invariably leads him to anger and greed. Why does pride arise? Sin, Orthodoxy claims, becomes a consequence of improper upbringing and limited development. It is difficult to rid a person of vice. Usually higher powers give him a test in the form of poverty or physical injury, after which he either becomes even more evil and proud, or is completely cleansed of the wicked state of the soul.
Greed
The second most serious sin. Vanity is a product of greed and pride, their common fruit. Therefore, these two vices are the foundation on which a whole bunch of immoral character traits grow. As for greed, it manifests itself in the form of an indomitable desire to receive a lot of money. The people whom she touched with her icy hand stop spending their finances even on what is necessary, they accumulate wealth contrary to common sense. Apart from a way to earn money, such individuals do not think about anything else. It is from the seeds of greed that such vices of the human soul as greed, self-interest and envy sprout. They are the reason that the entire history of mankind is drenched in the blood of innocent victims.
In our time, greed continues to occupy a leading position in the sinful hierarchy. The popularity of loans, financial pyramids and business trainings confirms the sad fact that the meaning of life for many people is enrichment and luxury. Greed is going crazy for money. Like any other insanity, it is destructive to the individual: the individual spends the best years of his life not searching for himself, but on the endless accumulation and increase of capital. Often he decides to commit a crime: theft, fraud, corruption. To overcome greed, a person needs to understand that true happiness is within him, and it does not depend on material wealth. The counterbalance is generosity: give part of what you earn to those in need. This is the only way to cultivate the ability to share benefits with other people.
Envy
Considering the 7 deadly sins, Orthodoxy calls this vice one of the most terrible. Most of the crimes in the world are committed based on envy: people rob neighbors just because they are richer, kill acquaintances who are in power, plot against friends, angry at their popularity with the opposite sex... The list is endless. Even if envy does not become an impetus for misconduct, it will invariably provoke the destruction of a person’s personality. For example, an individual will drive himself into a premature grave, tormenting his soul with a distorted perception of reality and negative emotions.
Many people reassure themselves that their envy is white. They say that they appreciate the achievements of a loved one, which becomes an incentive for personal growth for them. But if you face the truth, no matter how you paint this vice, it will still be immoral. Black, white or multi-colored envy is a sin, because it involves your desire to conduct a financial inspection in someone else's pocket. And sometimes you take over something that doesn’t belong to you. To get rid of this unpleasant and spiritually devouring feeling, you need to realize: other people's benefits are always superfluous. You are a completely self-sufficient and strong person, so you can find your place in the sun.
Gluttony
The word is old and beautiful. It also directly points to the essence of the problem. Gluttony is serving one’s body, worshiping earthly desires and passions. Just think how disgusting a person looks, in whose life the main place is occupied by a primitive instinct: satiation of the body. The words “belly” and “animal” are related and similar in sound. They came from the Old Slavonic source code alive- "alive". Of course, in order to exist, an individual must eat. But we should remember: we eat to live, and not vice versa.
Gluttony, greed for food, satiety, eating large quantities of food - all this is gluttony. Most people do not take this sin seriously, believing that the love of goodies is their slight weakness. But one has only to look at it on a more global scale, how the vice becomes ominous: millions of people on Earth are dying of hunger, while someone, without shame or conscience, stuffs their belly to the point of nausea. Overcoming gluttony is often difficult. You will need iron willpower to strangle the baser instincts within yourself and limit yourself in food to the necessary minimum. Strict fasting and giving up your favorite delicacies help to cope with gluttony.
Fornication
Sins in Orthodoxy are the base desires of a weak-willed person. The manifestation of sexual activity, which is not carried out in a marriage blessed by the church, is considered fornication. This can also include infidelity, various kinds of intimate perversions and promiscuity. The most important thing is that this is only the physical shell of what is actually gnawing at the brain. After all, it is the gray matter, its imagination and the ability to fantasize that sends impulses that push a person to an immoral act. Therefore, in Orthodoxy, fornication is also considered viewing pornographic materials, listening to obscene jokes, obscene remarks and thoughts - in a word, everything from which bodily sin itself is born.
Many people often confuse fornication with lust, considering them to be the same concept. But these are slightly different terms. Lust can also manifest itself in a legal marriage, when the husband rightfully desires his wife. And this is not considered a sin; on the contrary, it is encouraged by the church, which considers such a connection necessary for the continuation of the human race. Fornication is an invariable deviation from the rules preached by religion. When talking about it, they often use the expression “sin of Sodom.” In Orthodoxy, this term refers to an unnatural attraction to persons of the same sex. It is often impossible to get rid of a vice without the help of experienced psychologists, and also due to the lack of a strong inner core within a person.
Anger
It would seem that this is the natural state of a person... We get angry or indignant for various reasons, but the church condemns this. If you look at the 10 sins in Orthodoxy, this vice does not look like such a terrible offense. Moreover, the Bible even often uses such a concept as righteous anger - energy given by God aimed at solving problems. An example is the confrontation between Paul and Peter. The latter, by the way, gave the wrong example: the angry complaint of David, who heard from the prophet about injustice, and even the indignation of Jesus, who learned about the desecration of the temple. But please note: none of the mentioned episodes refers to self-defense; on the contrary, they all imply the protection of other people, society, religion, and principles.
Anger becomes a sin only when it has selfish motives. In this case, Divine goals are distorted. It is also condemned when it is prolonged, so-called chronic. Instead of generating indignation into energy, we begin to enjoy it, allowing anger to subjugate us. Of course, in this case the most important thing is forgotten - the goal that needs to be achieved with the help of anger. Instead, we focus on the person and the uncontrollable aggression towards him. To cope with it, you must in any case respond with good to any evil. This is the key to transforming anger into true love.
Laziness
More than one page is devoted to this vice in the Bible. Parables are filled with wisdom and warnings, saying that idleness can destroy any individual. There should be no place for idleness in the life of a believer, because it violates God’s purpose - good deeds. Laziness is a sin, because a non-working person is not able to provide for his family, support the weak, or help the poor. Instead, work is a tool with which you can get closer to God and cleanse your soul. The main thing is to work for the benefit not only of yourself, but of all people, society, the state and the church.
Laziness can turn a full-fledged personality into a limited animal. Lying on the couch and living at the expense of others, a person becomes an ulcer on the body, a creature sucking blood and vitality. To free yourself from laziness, you need to realize: without effort you are a weakling, a universal laughing stock, a creature of low rank, not a person. Of course, we are not talking about those people who, due to certain circumstances, cannot work fully. This refers to vigorous, physically healthy individuals who have every opportunity to benefit society, but ignore them due to a morbid tendency to idleness.
Other terrible sins in Orthodoxy
They are divided into two large groups: vices that bring harm to one’s neighbor, and those that are directed against God. The first includes such atrocities as murder, beatings, slander, and humiliation. The Bible teaches us to love our neighbor as ourselves, and also to forgive the guilty, honor our elders, protect our younger ones, and help those in need. Always keep promises on time, appreciate the work of others, raise children according to the canons of the Christian faith, protect plants and animals, do not judge for mistakes, forget about hypocrisy, slander, jealousy and ridicule.
Sins in Orthodoxy against God imply failure to fulfill the will of the Lord, ignoring the commandments, lack of gratitude, superstition, turning to magicians and fortune-tellers for help. Try not to pronounce the name of the Lord unless necessary, do not blaspheme or complain, learn not to sin. Instead, read the Holy Scriptures, go to temple, pray sincerely, get spiritually enriched and read everything
| TABLE OF CONTENTS |
| About repentance |
| Sins against God and the Church |
| Sins towards others |
| List of deadly sins |
| Special mortal sins - blasphemy against the Holy Spirit |
| About the eight main passions with their divisions and branches and about the virtues that oppose them (according to the works of St. Ignatius Brianchaninov). |
| General list of sins |
| edition ZADONSKY CHRISTMAS OF THE BOGORODITSKY MONASTERY 2005 |
About repentance
Our Lord Jesus Christ, who came to call not the righteous, but sinners to repentance (Matthew 9:13), Even in His earthly life he established the sacrament of forgiveness of sins. He released the harlot, who had washed His feet with tears of repentance, with the words: “Your sins are forgiven... your faith has saved you, go in peace.” (Luke 7, 48, 50). He healed the paralytic brought to Him on his bed, saying: “Your sins are forgiven... but so that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins,” then He said to the paralytic, “get up, take up your bed and go to your house.” » (Matt. 9, 2, 6).
He transferred this power to the apostles, and they to the priests of the Church of Christ, who have the right to resolve sinful bonds, that is, to free the soul from the sins committed and affecting it. If only a person came to confession with a feeling of repentance, awareness of his untruths and a desire to cleanse his soul of sinful burdens...
This brochure is intended to help the repentant: it contains a list of sins compiled on the basis of the “general confession” of St. Demetrius of Rostov.
Sins against God and the Church
* Disobedience to the will of God. Obvious disagreement with the will of God, expressed in His commandments, Holy Scripture, instructions of the spiritual father, the voice of conscience, reinterpretation of God's will in one's own way, in a sense beneficial to oneself for the purpose of self-justification or condemnation of one's neighbor, putting one's own will above the will of Christ, jealousy not according to reason in ascetic exercises and forcing others to follow themselves, failure to fulfill promises made to God in previous confessions.
* Murmuring against God. This sin is a consequence of distrust in God, which can lead to complete falling away from the Church, loss of faith, apostasy and opposition to God. The opposite virtue to this sin is humility before God’s Providence for oneself.
* Ingratitude to God. A person often turns to God in times of trials, sorrows and illnesses, asking to soften or even get rid of them; on the contrary, during periods of external well-being, he forgets about Him, not realizing that he is using His good gift, and does not thank him for it. The opposite virtue is constant gratitude to the Heavenly Father for the trials, consolations, spiritual joys and earthly happiness He sends.
* Lack of faith, doubt in the truth of Holy Scripture and Tradition (that is, in the dogmas of the Church, its canons, the legality and correctness of the hierarchy, the performance of worship, the authority of the writings of the Holy Fathers). Renunciation of faith in God out of fear of people and concern for earthly well-being.
Lack of faith - the absence of complete, deep conviction in any Christian truth or the acceptance of this truth only with the mind, but not with the heart. This sinful state arises out of doubt or lack of zeal for the true knowledge of God. Lack of faith is to the heart what doubt is to the mind. It relaxes the heart on the path of fulfilling the will of God. Confession helps to drive out lack of faith and strengthen the heart.
Doubt is a thought that violates (obviously and vaguely) the conviction in the truth of the teachings of Christ and His Church in general and in particular, for example, doubts in the Gospel commandments, doubts in dogmas, that is, any member of the Creed, in the holiness of something recognized by the Church a saint or events of Sacred history celebrated in the Church, in the inspiration of the Holy Fathers; doubt in the veneration of holy icons and relics of holy saints, in the invisible Divine presence, in worship and in the sacraments.
In life, one must learn to distinguish between “empty” doubts aroused by demons, the environment (the world) and one’s own sin-darkened mind - such doubts must be rejected by an act of will - and real spiritual problems that must be resolved based on complete trust in God and His Church , forcing oneself to complete self-disclosure before the Lord in the presence of a confessor. It is better to confess all doubts: both those that were rejected by the inner spiritual eye, and especially those that were accepted in the heart and gave rise to confusion and despondency there. In this way the mind is purified and enlightened and faith is strengthened.
Doubt can arise on the basis of excessive trust in oneself, being carried away by other people’s opinions, and little zeal for the awareness of one’s faith. The fruit of doubt is relaxation in following the path of salvation, opposition to the will of God.
* Passivity(little zeal, lack of effort) in the knowledge of Christian truth, the teachings of Christ and His Church. Lack of desire (if there is such an opportunity) to read the Holy Scriptures, the works of the holy fathers, to ponder and comprehend with the heart the dogmas of faith, to understand the meaning of worship. This sin arises from mental laziness or excessive fear of falling into any doubt. As a result, the truths of faith are absorbed superficially, thoughtlessly, mechanically, and in the end a person’s ability to effectively and consciously fulfill the will of God in life is undermined.
* Heresies and superstitions. Heresy is a false teaching relating to the spiritual world and communication with it, rejected by the Church as being in clear contradiction with Holy Scripture and Tradition. Personal pride, excessive trust in one’s own mind and personal spiritual experience often leads to heresy. The reason for heretical opinions and judgments may also be insufficient knowledge of the teachings of the Church, or theological ignorance.
* Ritualism. Adherence to the letter of Scripture and Tradition, attaching importance only to the external side of church life while forgetting its meaning and purpose - these vices are united under the name of ritualism. Belief in the saving significance of only the exact fulfillment of ritual actions in themselves, without taking into account their inner spiritual meaning, testifies to the inferiority of faith and a decrease in reverence for God, forgetting that a Christian must “serve God in the renewal of the spirit, and not according to the old letter.” (Rom. 7:6). Ritualism arises due to insufficient understanding of good news Christ, but “He gave us the ability to be ministers of the New Testament, not of the letter, but of the spirit, because the letter kills, but the spirit gives life.” (2 Cor. 3:6). Ritualism testifies to an inadequate perception of the teachings of the Church, which does not correspond to its greatness, or to an unreasonable zeal for service, which does not correspond to the will of God. Ritualism, which is quite widespread among the church people, entails superstition, legalism, pride, and division.
* Mistrust of God. This sin is expressed in the lack of confidence that the primary cause of all external and internal life circumstances is the Lord, who desires our true good. Distrust of God is caused by the fact that a person has not sufficiently become accustomed to the Gospel Revelation, has not felt its main point: the voluntary suffering, crucifixion, death and resurrection of the Son of God.
From distrust of God arise such sins as lack of constant gratitude to Him, despondency, despair (especially in illness, sorrow), cowardice in circumstances, fear of the future, vain attempts to insure against suffering and avoid trials, and in case of failure - hidden or open murmur on God and His Providence for himself. The opposite virtue is placing one’s hopes and hopes on God, fully accepting His Providence for oneself.
* Lack of fear of God and reverence for Him. Careless, absent-minded prayer, irreverent behavior in the temple, before the shrine, disrespect for the sacred dignity.
Lack of mortal memory in anticipation of the Last Judgment.
* Small jealousy(or its complete absence) to communion with God, spiritual life. Salvation is fellowship with God in Christ in the eternal future life. Earthly life for the acquisition of the grace of the Holy Spirit, the revelation of the Kingdom of Heaven, the world of God, the sonship of God. Achieving this goal depends on God, but God will not constantly be with a person if he does not show all his zeal, love, intelligence to get closer to Him. The whole life of a Christian is directed towards this goal. If you have no love for prayer as a way of communicating with God, for the temple, for participating in the sacraments, then this is a sign of a lack of zeal for communication with God.
In relation to prayer, this manifests itself in the fact that it occurs only under duress, irregular, inattentive, relaxed, with a careless body position, mechanical, limited only to prayers learned by heart or read out. There is no constant memory of God, love and gratitude to Him as the background of all life.
Possible reasons: insensibility of the heart, passivity of the mind, lack of proper preparation for prayer, unwillingness to think through and understand with your heart and mind the meaning of the upcoming prayer work and the content of each forgiveness or doxology.
Another group of reasons: attachment of the mind, heart and will to earthly things.
In relation to temple worship, this sin is manifested in rare, irregular participation in public worship, in absent-mindedness or talking during the service, walking around the temple, distracting others from prayer with one’s requests or comments, being late for the start of the service and leaving before dismissal and blessing.
In general, this sin comes down to inability to feel the special presence of God in the temple during public worship.
Causes of sin: reluctance to enter into prayerful unity with brothers and sisters in Christ due to being burdened with earthly concerns and immersion in the vain affairs of this world, powerlessness in the fight against internal temptations sent by spiritually hostile forces that interfere and hold us back from acquiring the grace of the Holy Spirit, and , finally, pride, an unbrotherly, unloving attitude towards other parishioners, irritation and anger against them.
In relation to the Sacrament of repentance, the sin of indifference is manifested in rare confessions without proper preparation, in the preference for a general confession to a personal one in order to go through it more painlessly, in the absence of a desire to deeply know oneself, in an uncontrite and unhumble spiritual disposition, in the lack of determination to leave sin and eradicate vicious inclinations , to overcome temptations, instead - the desire to minimize sin, justify oneself, and keep silent about the most shameful actions and thoughts. By thereby committing deception in the face of the Lord Himself, who accepts confession, a person aggravates his sins.
The reasons for these phenomena are a lack of understanding of the spiritual meaning of the Sacrament of Repentance, complacency, self-pity, vanity, and an unwillingness to internally overcome demonic resistance.
We sin especially grievously against the Most Holy and Life-Giving Mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ, approaching Holy Communion rarely and without proper preparation, without first cleansing the soul in the Sacrament of repentance; we do not feel the need to receive communion more often, we do not maintain our purity after communion, but again we fall into vanity and indulge in vices.
The reasons for this are rooted in the fact that we do not think deeply about the meaning of the highest sacrament of the Church, we do not realize its greatness and our sinful unworthiness, the need for healing of soul and body, we do not pay attention to the insensitivity of the heart, we do not realize the influence of fallen spirits nesting in our soul, which turn us away from communion, and therefore we do not resist, but succumb to their temptation, we do not enter into struggle with them, we do not experience reverence and fear of God’s presence in the Holy Gifts, we are not afraid to partake of the Holy Place “in judgment and condemnation,” we do not worry about the constant fulfillment of our will God in life, inattentive to our hearts, subject to vanity, approaching the Holy Chalice with a hardened heart, not reconciled with our neighbors.
* Self-justification, complacency. Satisfaction with one's spiritual structure or state.
* Despair from the spectacle of one’s spiritual state and powerlessness to fight sin. In general, self-assessment of one’s own spiritual structure and state; placing spiritual judgment on oneself in contrast to what the Lord Jesus Christ said: “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay” (Rom. 12:19).
* Lack of spiritual sobriety constant heartfelt attention, absent-mindedness, sinful oblivion, foolishness.
* Spiritual pride attributing to oneself the gifts received from God, the desire for independent possession of any spiritual gifts and energies.
* Spiritual fornication attraction to spirits alien to Christ (occultism, eastern mysticism, theosophy). True spiritual life is being in the Holy Spirit.
* Frivolous and sacrilegious attitude towards God and the Church: using the name of God in jokes, frivolous mention of holy things, curses with the mention of His name, pronouncing the name of God without reverence.
* Spiritual individualism, a tendency to isolation in prayer (even during the Divine Liturgy), forgetting that we are members of the Catholic Church, members of one mystical Body of Christ, members of each other.
* Spiritual egoism, spiritual voluptuousness- prayer, participation in the sacraments only for the sake of receiving spiritual pleasures, consolations and experiences.
* Impatience in Prayer and Others spiritual exploits. This includes failure to follow prayer rules, breaking fasts, eating at the wrong time, and leaving church early without a particularly good reason.
* Consumer attitude towards God and the Church, when there is no desire to give anything to the Church, to work for it in any way. Prayerful request for worldly success, honors, satisfaction of selfish desires and material wealth.
* Spiritual stinginess lack of spiritual generosity, the need to convey to others the grace received from God with words of consolation, sympathy, and service to people.
* Lack of constant concern for doing God's will in life. This sin manifests itself when we do serious things without asking for God's blessing, without consulting or asking for the blessing of our spiritual father.
Sins towards others
* Pride, exaltation over one's neighbor, arrogance, “demonic stronghold” (this most dangerous of sins is discussed separately and in detail below).
* Condemnation. The tendency to notice, remember and name other people's shortcomings, to commit overt or internal judgment on one's neighbor. Under the influence of condemnation of one’s neighbor, which is not always noticeable even to oneself, a distorted image of one’s neighbor is formed in the heart. This image then serves as an internal justification for dislike for this person, a disdainful and evil attitude towards him. In the process of repentance, this false image must be crushed and, on the basis of love, the true image of each neighbor must be recreated in the heart.
* Anger, irritability, grumpiness. Can I control my anger? Do I allow swear words and curses in quarrels with neighbors and in raising children? Do I use foul language in normal conversation (to be “like everyone else”)? Is there rudeness, rudeness, impudence, evil mockery, hatred in my behavior?
* Unmercifulness, lack of compassion. Am I responsive to requests for help? Are you ready for self-sacrifice and almsgiving? Is it easy for me to lend things or money? Am I not reproaching my debtors? Am I rudely and persistently demanding the return of what I borrowed? Am I not bragging to people about my sacrifices, alms, helping my neighbors, expecting approval and earthly rewards? Wasn't he stingy, afraid of not getting what he asked for back?
Works of mercy should be done in secret, for we do them not for the sake of human glory, but for the sake of love for God and neighbor.
* Grudges, unforgiveness of insults, vindictiveness. Excessive demands on one's neighbor. These sins are contrary to both the spirit and the letter of the Gospel of Christ. Our Lord teaches us to forgive our neighbor’s sins against us up to seventy times seventy times. Without forgiving others, taking revenge on them for an insult, holding in our minds a grudge against another, we cannot hope for the forgiveness of our own sins by the Heavenly Father.
* Self-isolation, alienation from other people.
* Neglect of neighbors, indifference. This sin is especially terrible in relation to parents: ingratitude towards them, callousness. If our parents have died, do we remember to remember them in prayer?
* Vanity, ambition. We fall into this sin when we become vain, flaunting our talents, mental and physical, intelligence, education, and when we demonstrate our superficial spirituality, ostentatious churchliness, imaginary piety.
How do we treat our family members, people with whom we often meet or work? Can we tolerate their weaknesses? Do we often get irritated? Are we arrogant, touchy, intolerant of other people's shortcomings, of other people's opinions?
* Lust, the desire to be first, to command. Do we love to be served? How do we treat people who depend on us at work and at home? Do we like to dominate, to insist on doing our will? Do we have a tendency to interfere in other people's affairs, in other people's personal lives, with persistent advice and instructions? Don't we tend to leave the last word for ourselves, just to disagree with the opinion of another, even if he is right?
* Humanity- this is the other side of the sin of covetousness. We fall into it, wanting to please another person, fearing to disgrace ourselves in front of him. Out of people-pleasing intentions, we often fail to expose obvious sin and participate in lies. Have we indulged in flattery, that is, feigned, exaggerated admiration for a person, trying to gain his favor? Have we adjusted to other people's opinions and tastes for our own benefit? Have you ever been deceitful, dishonest, two-faced, or dishonest at work? Didn't you betray people to save yourself from trouble? Did you place your blame on others? Have you kept other people's secrets?
Reflecting on his past, a Christian preparing for confession must remember all the bad things that he, voluntarily or unwittingly, committed towards his neighbors.
Was it the cause of grief, someone else's misfortune? Didn't he destroy the family? Are you guilty of adultery and have you encouraged someone else to commit this sin through pimping? Did you not take upon yourself the sin of killing an unborn child, did you contribute to it? These sins should only be repented of in personal confession.
Was he prone to obscene jokes, anecdotes, and immoral allusions? Didn’t he insult the sanctity of human love with cynicism and outrage?
* Disturbing the peace. Do we know how to maintain peace in the family, in communication with neighbors, and co-workers? Don't we allow ourselves slander, condemnation, and evil ridicule? Do we know how to curb our tongue, are we not talkative?
Are we showing an idle, sinful curiosity about the lives of other people? Are we attentive to the needs and concerns of people? Are we not closing in on ourselves, in our supposedly spiritual problems, turning away people?
* Envy, malice, gloating. Have you envied someone else's success, position, arrangement? Didn't you secretly wish for failure, failure, a sad outcome for other people's affairs? Did you not openly or secretly rejoice at someone else’s misfortune or failure? Did you incite others to evil deeds while remaining outwardly innocent? Have you ever been overly suspicious, seeing only the bad in everyone? Did one person point out the vice (explicit or imaginary) of another person in order to quarrel between them? Have you abused the trust of your neighbor by revealing to others his shortcomings or sins? Did you spread gossip discrediting the wife before the husband or the husband before the wife? Did your behavior cause jealousy of one of the spouses and anger against the other?
* Resistance to evil against oneself. This sin is manifested in obvious resistance to the offender, in repaying evil for evil, when our heart does not want to bear the pain caused to him.
* Failure to provide assistance to one's neighbor, the offended, the persecuted. We fall into this sin when, out of cowardice or misunderstood humility, we do not stand up for the offended, do not expose the offender, do not testify to the truth, and allow evil and injustice to triumph.
How do we bear the misfortune of our neighbor, do we remember the commandment: “Bear one another’s burdens”? Are you always ready to help, sacrificing your peace and well-being? Are we leaving our neighbor in trouble?
Sins against oneself and other sinful tendencies that are contrary to the spirit of Christ
* Dejection, despair. Have you given in to despondency and despair? Did you have thoughts of suicide?
* Bad faith. Do we force ourselves to serve others? Are we sinning by dishonestly fulfilling our duties in work and raising children? whether we keep our promises to people; Don’t we tempt people by being late to the meeting place or to the house where they are waiting for us, by being forgetful, unobligatory, and frivolous?
Are we careful at work, at home, in transport? Are we scattered in our work: forgetting to finish one task, we move on to another? Do we strengthen ourselves in the intention to serve others?
* Bodily excesses. Didn’t you destroy yourself with excesses of the flesh: overeating, sweet eating, gluttony, eating at the wrong time?
Have you abused your penchant for bodily peace and comfort, sleeping a lot, lying in bed after waking up? Have you indulged in laziness, immobility, lethargy, and relaxation? Are you so partial to a certain way of life that you are unwilling to change it for the sake of your neighbor?
Am I not guilty of drunkenness, this most terrible of modern vices, destroying soul and body, bringing evil and suffering to others? How do you fight this vice? Do you help your neighbor to give up on him? Did you not tempt the non-drinker with wine, or give wine to the young and sick?
Are you addicted to smoking, which also destroys your health? Smoking distracts from spiritual life, a cigarette replaces a smoker’s prayer, displaces the consciousness of sins, destroys spiritual chastity, serves as a temptation for others, and harms their health, especially children and adolescents. Did you use drugs?
* Sensual thoughts and temptations. Have we struggled with sensual thoughts? Have you avoided the temptations of the flesh? Have you turned away from seductive sights, conversations, touches? Have you sinned by intemperance of mental and physical feelings, pleasure and procrastination in unclean thoughts, voluptuousness, immodest viewing of persons of the opposite sex, self-defilement? Don't we remember with pleasure our previous sins of the flesh?
* Peacefulness. Are we not guilty of pleasing human passions, mindlessly following the lifestyle and behavior accepted among the people around us, including, although existing in the church environment, but not imbued with the spirit of love, feigning piety, falling into hypocrisy and pharisaism?
* Disobedience. Do we sin by disobeying our parents, elders in the family, or bosses at work? Are we not following the advice of our spiritual father, are we avoiding the penance he imposed on us, this spiritual medicine that heals the soul? Do we suppress reproaches of conscience within ourselves, not fulfilling the law of love?
* Idleness, extravagance, attachment to things. Are we wasting our time? Are we using the talents God has given us for good? Are we wasting money without benefiting ourselves and others?
Are we not guilty of addiction to the comforts of life, are we not attached to perishable material things, are we not excessively accumulating, “for a rainy day,” food products, clothes, shoes, luxurious furniture, jewelry, thereby not trusting God and His Providence, forgetting that tomorrow we can appear before His court?
* Acquisitiveness. We fall into this sin when we are overly carried away by the accumulation of perishable wealth or seeking human glory in work, in creativity; when, under the pretext of being busy, we refuse to pray and go to church even on Sundays and holidays, we indulge in over-concern and vanity. This leads to captivity of the mind and petrification of the heart.
We sin in word, deed, thought, with all five senses, knowledge and ignorance, voluntarily and involuntarily, in reason and unreason, and there is no way to list all our sins according to their multitude. But we truly repent of them and ask for grace-filled help to remember all our sins, forgotten and therefore unrepentant. We promise to continue to take care of ourselves with God’s help, avoid sin and do deeds of love. But You, Lord, forgive us and forgive us from all sins according to Your mercy and long-suffering, and bless us to partake of Your Holy and Life-giving Mysteries, not for judgment and condemnation, but for the healing of soul and body. Amen.
List of deadly sins
1. Pride, despising everyone, demanding servility from others, ready to ascend to heaven and become like the Most High; in a word, pride to the point of self-adoration.
2. An insatiable soul, or Judas’s greed for money, combined for the most part with unrighteous acquisitions, not allowing a person even a minute to think about spiritual things.
3. Fornication, or the dissolute life of the prodigal son, who squandered all his father’s estate on such a life.
4. Envy leading to every possible crime against one's neighbor.
5. Gluttony, or carnalism, not knowing any fasting, combined with a passionate attachment to various amusements, following the example of the evangelical rich man, who had fun all day long.
6. Anger unapologetic and deciding to commit terrible destruction, following the example of Herod, who in his anger beat the infants of Bethlehem.
7. Laziness or complete carelessness about the soul, carelessness about repentance until the last days of life, as, for example, in the days of Noah.
Special mortal sins - blasphemy against the Holy Spirit
These sins include:
Stubborn disbelief not convinced by any evidence of truth, even by obvious miracles, rejecting the most established truth.
Despair, or the feeling opposite to excessive trust in God in relation to God’s mercy, which denies the fatherly goodness in God and leads to thoughts of suicide.
Excessive reliance on God or the continuation of a gravely sinful life in the sole hope of God’s mercy.
Deadly sins that cry out to heaven for vengeance
* In general, intentional homicide (abortion), and especially parricide (fratricide and regicide).
* Sin of Sodom.
* Unnecessary oppression of a poor, defenseless person, a defenseless widow and young orphans.
* Withholding from a wretched worker the wages he deserves.
* Taking away from a person in his extreme situation the last piece of bread or the last mite, which he obtained with sweat and blood, as well as the violent or secret appropriation of alms, food, warmth or clothing from prisoners in prison, which are determined by him, and in general their oppression.
* Chagrin and insults to parents to the point of impudent beatings.
About the eight main passions with their divisions
and otralami and about the virtues that oppose them
(based on the works of St. Ignatius Brianchaninov)
1. Gluttony- overeating, drunkenness, non-keeping and allowing fasts, secret eating, delicacy, and generally violation of abstinence. Incorrect and excessive love of the flesh, its belly and rest, which constitutes self-love, from which comes failure to remain faithful to God, the Church, virtue and people.
This passion must be resisted abstinence - refraining from excessive consumption of food and nutrition, especially from drinking wine in excess, and maintaining fasts established by the Church. One must curb one’s flesh by moderate and constantly equal consumption of food, which is why all passions in general begin to weaken, and especially self-love, which consists of a wordless love of the flesh, life and its peace.
2. Fornication- prodigal kindling, prodigal sensations and attitudes of the soul and heart. Prodigal dreams and captivities. Failure to preserve the senses, especially the sense of touch, is the insolence that destroys all virtues. Foul language and reading voluptuous books. Natural prodigal sins: fornication and adultery. Prodigal sins are unnatural.
This passion is resisted chastity - avoidance of all kinds of fornication. Chastity is avoidance of voluptuous conversations and reading, and the utterance of voluptuous, foul and ambiguous words. Storing the senses, especially sight and hearing, and even more so the sense of touch. Alienation from television and depraved films, from depraved newspapers, books and magazines. Modesty. Rejection of the thoughts and dreams of prodigals. The beginning of chastity is a mind that does not waver from lustful thoughts and dreams; the perfection of chastity is purity that sees God.
3. Love of money- love of money, in general love of property, movable and immovable. The desire to get rich. Thinking about the means to get rich. Dreaming of wealth. Fears of old age, unexpected poverty, illness, exile. Stinginess. Selfishness. Disbelief in God, lack of trust in His Providence. Addiction or painful excessive love for various perishable objects, depriving the soul of freedom. Passion for vain concerns. Loving gifts. Appropriation of someone else's. Likhva. Cruelty towards the poor brethren and all those in need. Theft. Robbery.
They fight this passion non-covetousness - self-satisfaction with only what is necessary, hatred of luxury and bliss, charity for the poor. Non-covetousness is the love of gospel poverty. Trust in God's Providence. Following Christ's commandments. Calmness and freedom of spirit and carelessness. Softness of heart.
4. Anger— hot temper, acceptance of angry thoughts: dreams of anger and revenge, indignation of the heart with rage, darkening of the mind by it; obscene shouting, argument, swearing, cruel and caustic words; hitting, pushing, killing. Malice, hatred, enmity, revenge, slander, condemnation, indignation and insult to one’s neighbor.
The passion of anger is opposed meekness — avoidance of angry thoughts and indignation of the heart with rage. Patience. Following Christ, who calls His disciple to the cross. Peace of the heart. Silence of the mind. Christian firmness and courage. Not feeling insulted. Kindness.
5. Sadness- grief, melancholy, cutting off hope in God, doubt in God’s promises, ingratitude to God for everything that happens, cowardice, impatience, lack of self-reproach, sorrow for one’s neighbor, grumbling, renunciation of the cross, attempt to descend from it.
They fight this passion by opposing it blissful cry — a feeling of decline, common to all people, and of one’s own spiritual poverty. Lamentation about them. Cry of the mind. Painful contrition of the heart. The lightness of conscience, grace-filled consolation and joy that vegetates from them. Hope in God's mercy. Thank God in sorrows, humbly enduring them from the sight of the multitude of one’s sins. Willingness to endure.
6. Dejection- laziness towards any good deed, especially prayer. Abandonment of church and cell rules. Abandoning unceasing prayer and soul-helping reading. Inattention and haste in prayer. Neglect. Irreverence. Idleness. Excessive calming by sleeping, lying down and all kinds of restlessness. Celebration. Jokes. Blasphemy. Abandonment of bows and other physical feats. Forgetting your sins. Forgetting the commandments of Christ. Negligence. Captivity. Deprivation of the fear of God. Bitterness. Insensibility. Despair.
Opposes despondency sobriety — zeal for every good deed. Non-slothful correction of church and cell rules. Attention when praying. Careful observation of all deeds, words, thoughts
and your feelings. Extreme self-distrust. Continuous stay in prayer and the Word of God. Awe. Constant vigilance over oneself. Keeping yourself from a lot of sleep and effeminacy, idle talk, jokes and sharp words. Love of night vigils, bows and other feats that bring cheerfulness to the soul. Remembrance of eternal blessings, desire and expectation of them.
7. Vanity- the search for human glory. Boasting. Desire and search for earthly and vain honors. Loving beautiful clothes. Attention to the beauty of your face, the pleasantness of your voice and other qualities of your body. Shame to confess your sins. Hiding them before people and the spiritual father. Craftiness. Self-justification. Envy. Humiliation of one's neighbor. Changeability of character. Indulgence. Unconscionability. The character and life are demonic.
They fight vanity humility . This virtue includes the fear of God. Feeling it during prayer. Fear that arises during especially pure prayer, when the presence and greatness of God is felt especially strongly, so as not to disappear and turn into nothing. Deep knowledge of one's insignificance. A change in view of one’s neighbors, and they, without any coercion, seem to the humbled person to be superior to him in all respects. The manifestation of simplicity from living faith. Knowledge of the mystery hidden in the Cross of Christ. The desire to crucify oneself to the world and passions, the desire for this crucifixion. Rejection of earthly wisdom as obscene before God (Lk. 16.15). Silence before those who offend, studied in the Gospel. Putting aside all your own speculations and accepting the mind of the Gospel. The casting down of every thought that rises up against the mind of Christ. Humility or spiritual reasoning. Conscious obedience to the Church in everything.
8. Pride- contempt for one's neighbor. Preferring yourself to everyone. Insolence; darkness, dullness of mind and heart. Nailing them to the earthly. Hula. Disbelief. False mind. Disobedience to the Law of God and the Church. Following your carnal will. Abandonment of Christ-like humility and silence. Loss of simplicity. Loss of love for God and neighbor. False philosophy. Heresy. Godlessness. Ignorance. Death of the soul.
Pride Resists Love . The virtue of love includes changing the fear of God into the love of God during prayer. Fidelity to the Lord, proven by the constant rejection of every sinful thought and feeling, the indescribable, sweet attraction of the whole person with love for the Lord Jesus Christ and for the worshiped Holy Trinity. Seeing the image of God and Christ in others; resulting from this spiritual vision, the preference for oneself over all neighbors, their reverent veneration for the Lord. Love for neighbors, brotherly, pure, equal to everyone, joyful, impartial, flaming equally towards friends and enemies. Admiration for prayer and love of the mind, heart and whole body. Indescribable pleasure of the body with spiritual joy. Inactivity of the bodily senses during prayer. Resolution from the muteness of the heart's tongue. Stopping prayer from spiritual sweetness. Silence of the mind. Enlightening the mind and heart. Prayer power that overcomes sin. Peace of Christ. Retreat of all passions. The absorption of all understandings into the superior mind of Christ. Theology. Knowledge of incorporeal beings. The weakness of sinful thoughts that cannot be imagined in the mind. Sweetness and abundant consolation in times of sorrow. Vision of human structures. The depth of humility and the most humiliating opinion of oneself... The end is endless!
General list of sins
I confess that I am a great sinner (name) To the Lord God and our Savior Jesus Christ and to you, honorable father, all my sins and all my evil deeds, which I have done all the days of my life, which I have thought even to this day.
Sinned: He did not keep the vows of holy Baptism, but he lied about everything and created indecent things for himself before the face of God.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: before the Lord with little faith and slowness in thoughts, from the enemy everything against the faith and the Holy Church; ingratitude for all His great and unceasing benefits, calling on the name of God without need - in vain.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: lack of love and fear for the Lord, failure to fulfill His holy will and holy commandments, careless depiction of the sign of the cross, irreverent veneration of holy icons; did not wear a cross, was ashamed to be baptized and confess the Lord.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: he did not preserve love for his neighbor, did not feed the hungry and thirsty, did not clothe the naked, did not visit the sick and prisoners in prison; I did not study the law of God and the traditions of the holy fathers out of laziness and negligence.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: church and cell rules by non-compliance, going to the temple of God without diligence, with laziness and negligence; leaving morning, evening and other prayers; During the church service, I sinned by idle talk, laughter, dozing, inattention to reading and singing, absent-mindedness, leaving the temple during the service and not going to the temple of God due to laziness and negligence.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: daring to go to the temple of God in uncleanness and touch every holy thing.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: disrespect for the feasts of God; violation of holy fasts and failure to observe fasting days - Wednesday and Friday; intemperance in food and drink, polyeating, secret eating, intoxication, drunkenness, dissatisfaction with food and drink, clothing; parasitism; one’s will and mind through fulfillment, self-righteousness, self-indulgence and self-justification; undue reverence for parents, failure to raise children in the Orthodox faith, cursing their children and their neighbors.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: unbelief, superstition, doubt, despair, despondency, blasphemy, false gods, dancing, smoking, playing cards, fortune telling, witchcraft, sorcery, gossip; he remembered the living for their repose, ate the blood of animals.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: pride, conceit, arrogance; pride, ambition, envy, conceit, suspicion, irritability.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: condemnation of all people - living and dead, slander and anger, malice, hatred, evil for evil, retribution, slander, reproach, deceit, laziness, deception, hypocrisy, gossip, disputes, stubbornness, unwillingness to give in and serve one's neighbor; sinned with gloating, malice, malice, insult, ridicule, reproach and man-pleasing.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: incontinence of mental and physical feelings, mental and physical uncleanness; pleasure and procrastination in unclean thoughts, addiction, voluptuousness, immodest views of wives and young men; in a dream, prodigal desecration at night, intemperance in married life.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: impatience with illnesses and sorrows, love for the comforts of this life, captivity of the mind and hardening of the heart, not forcing oneself to do any good deed.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: inattention to the promptings of one’s conscience, negligence, laziness in reading the Word of God and negligence in acquiring the Jesus Prayer, covetousness, love of money, unrighteous acquisition, embezzlement, theft, stinginess, attachment to all sorts of things and people.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: condemnation and disobedience of spiritual fathers, grumbling and resentment against them and failure to confess one’s sins to them through oblivion, negligence and false shame.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: by unmercifulness, contempt and condemnation of the poor; going to the temple of God without fear and reverence, deviating into heresy and sectarian teaching.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: laziness, relaxation, laziness, love of bodily rest, excessive sleeping, voluptuous dreams, biased views, shameless body movements, touching, fornication, adultery, corruption, fornication, unmarried marriage; Those who performed abortions on themselves or others, or incited someone to this great sin - infanticide, sinned gravely; spent time in empty and idle pursuits, in empty conversations, jokes, laughter and other shameful sins; read obscene books, magazines and newspapers, watched depraved programs and films on television.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: despondency, cowardice, impatience, murmuring, despair of salvation, lack of hope in God's mercy, insensibility, ignorance, arrogance, shamelessness.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: slander of one's neighbor, anger, insult, irritation and ridicule, non-reconciliation, enmity and hatred, discord, spying on other people's sins and eavesdropping on other people's conversations.
Forgive me, honest father.
I sinned: by coldness and insensitivity in confession, by belittling sins, by blaming others rather than by condemning myself.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: against the Life-giving and Holy Mysteries of Christ, approaching them without proper preparation, without contrition and fear of God.
Forgive me, honest father.
Sinned: in word, thought and all my senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, -
willingly or unwillingly, knowledge or ignorance, in reason and unreason, and it is not possible to list all my sins according to their multitude. But in all of these, as well as in those unspeakable through oblivion, I repent and regret, and henceforth, with the help of God, I promise to take care.
You, honest father, forgive me and release me from all of this and pray for me, a sinner, and on that Day of Judgment testify before God about the sins I have confessed. Amen.
Sins confessed and resolved earlier should not be repeated in confession, for they, as the Holy Church teaches, have already been forgiven, but if we repeated them again, then we need to repent of them again. We must also repent of those sins that were forgotten, but are now remembered.
The repentant is required to recognize his sins, condemn himself in them, and self-convict himself before his confessor. This requires contrition and tears, faith in the forgiveness of sins. In order to get closer to Christ and receive salvation, it is necessary to hate previous sins and repent not only in word, but also in deed, that is, to correct your life: after all, sins shorten it, and the fight against them attracts the grace of God.
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