What is the difference between venial and mortal sin exactly?

“I thought all sin is sin, big or small…”

By Jameke Brown, Seminarian

Instagram: @catholicfire

You can think of our life as a journey—a journey from earthly life to eternal life. Now, along any journey, there are obstructions along the way, and the Church teaches that these obstructions are called sin, and there are two classes of sin: venial sin and mortal sin.

Now, venial sin, can be compared to a pothole along the journey. You know, if you drive through a pothole, it affects the journey. It might shake up the car, you might damage one of your shocks, but the car can still move forward, the car can still continue along the journey. Right?

Mortal sin, however, is when you take a completely wrong turn and you come off the path that takes you to eternal life, so that no matter how far you travel along that road, you will never get to your destination because it’s just the wrong road.

So, how do we get back on track? This is where the Sacrament of Confession comes in. The Sacrament of Confession is like a spiritual GPS. God, through His mercy, repositions you and places you back on the right path so that you can continue along your journey.

However, the Eucharistis like fuel for the car. So even if you’re placed on the right journey, the car can’t move forward unless there’s fuel in the car. And that’s what the Eucharist does for our souls.

After we’re placed on the right path, the Eucharist is like our spiritual sustenance to keep us moving forward towards eternal life. It’s why Jesus says in His Gospel, “Unless you eat of His flesh and drink of his blood, you shall not have life within you.”

We require supernatural life within our souls to continue living the spiritual life. And that’s what we receive through the Eucharist.

Once again, redirection through Confession, but fuel through the Eucharist.

Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash