A Familiar Situation
By JOE SIXPACK
A woman went to her priest to complain that her husband mistreated her. The priest knew the woman became angry at every little thing her husband did, and that she caused him to become angry with her nagging tongue. So Father concocted a little remedy for the situation.
The priest handed the woman a bottle and said, “Here you are. Take this medicine, and it will cure your anger and quarreling.”
“But what kind of medicine is it?” asked the woman.
“It’s miraculous water.”
“Miraculous water? What do I do? Sprinkle it on my husband?”
“No, not at all. All you have to do is keep some in your mouth. As long as you do that, he’ll never feel any desire to fight with you.”
The woman understood what Father meant. From that time on she never gave her husband anything to argue about.
I didn’t write this story to start any trouble between some of you married folks, although I realize the story describes an all-to-often occurrence in the relationships of some couples. My intent was to use a story to demonstrate the silliness of anger and its provocations. As we continue our discussion of the Fifth Commandment, looking at this lady’s angry husband and her provocations is a great place to start.
Genuine anger is usually a venial sin, unless the angered person goes into such a rage that he appears to have lost his senses. The reason I wrote “genuine anger” is that we must always distinguish between anger and righteous indignation. Anger is a sin against charity, and we should do all we can to avoid it. Righteous indignation is a just anger over sin, and it motivates an orderly desire for punishment.
Another important sin against the Fifth Commandment we should discuss is one that is topical and in the news fairly often these days: euthanasia. Euthanasia is immoral because life is taken with the excuse of avoiding pain, shortening suffering, or eliminating someone who is supposedly useless to society because of old age, defect, or illness. Only God can decide when life can end.
Christ sanctified suffering on the cross. For those who suffer and are not Catholic, the Holy Spirit can use that suffering in the process of the person’s conversion. The person who is already a Catholic can unite his suffering with the crucified Christ, thereby making his prayers very powerful and honorable in the sight of God.
St. John Paul II made the suffering of his final years very evident to the world, as he was trying to show us the importance of offering up our suffering. He did just as we all should do; he offered his suffering in reparation for his sins, as well as the sins of the whole world.
Direct sterilization is always mortally sinful, if done with the intention of preventing conception. Direct sterilization removes for selfish reasons the procreative power given for the generation of human life. This includes tubal ligation and vasectomy. Indirect sterilization isn’t sinful at all, as it’s done to correct a serious pathological condition. An example would be a hysterectomy when a woman has cancer.
Gluttony is defined as any excess, not just eating too much, and it is always sinful. The abuse of drugs or alcohol (drunkenness) is always excessive and therefore always sinful. Intoxication is mortally sinful when the person is so drunk that he can’t distinguish between right and wrong, or if he can’t remember his actions when he sobers up.
Scandal is yet another sin against the Fifth Commandment, but most people don’t understand the proper meaning of the word. Scandal is defined as “[a]ny action or its omission, not necessarily sinful in itself, that is likely to induce another to do something morally wrong. Direct scandal, also called diabolical scandal, has the deliberate intention to induce another to sin. In indirect scandal a person does something that he or she foresees will at least likely lead another to commit sin, but this is rather tolerated than positively desired.”
The Fifth Commandment obliges us to take the ordinary means to preserve our own life and health, as well as that of our neighbor so far as we are able. We’re not, however, obliged to take extraordinary means which involve extreme difficulty in order to preserve our life. Extraordinary means are to be taken, though, when the person is very necessary to his family, the Church, or society.
Extraordinary means of preserving life is a constantly evolving situation, due to the technological advances in medicine. For example, back in the 1960s, when they first started doing open heart surgery it was considered extraordinary means to have, say, bypass. It has become so common today, with significantly fewer risks, that it is now considered ordinary means.
Despite the Commandment’s admonition that we must protect and preserve our life, a person may risk his life or health if there is a proportionately serious reason. A good example would be for a soldier to throw himself on a hand grenade to save his fellow soldiers. This is, after all, what Jesus did for us all on the cross.
Direct or culpable suicide is a mortal sin because God alone has the right over life and death. When a person commits suicide he attempts to displace God and His rightful authority. Of course, the victim of suicide who suffers from elements that restrict his free will may not be responsible for his act in God’s sight.
Finally, there is the question of organ transplantation. Anyone who begins to study the Fifth Commandment begins to scratch his head and wonder if this common medical practice is actually permitted. The Church does permit the transplantation of vital organs, provided the donor is truly dead, or if he can lead a normal life without the organ. Donating a kidney is an example.
Next week, we’ll begin looking at two Commandments together — the sixth and the ninth. Look them up to see if you can figure out why this is What We Believe…Why We Believe It.
If you have a question or comment you can reach out to me through the “Ask Joe” page of JoeSixpackAnswers.com, or you can email me at Joe@CantankerousCatholic.com.
Hey, how would you like to see things like this article every week in your parish bulletin as an insert? You or your pastor can learn more about how to do that by emailing me at Joe@CantankerousCatholic.com.