MORTAL AND VENIAL SINS 23 



Hence the customary definition: "A mortal 

 sin is a turning away (aversio) from God and a 

 turning to (conversio) creatures with a change of 

 object." When the (final) object remains un- 

 changed, there is only venial sin. 24 



Mortal sin, therefore, is a complete turning 

 from God to the creature, whereby the crea- 

 ture becomes man's last end and the object 

 of his affection. Such an act necessarily de- 

 stroys the proper relation between God and 

 man, and consequently robs the soul of super- 

 natural life. Man is ordained towards his last 

 end by charity, and whatever runs counter to 

 charity (conceived either as the love of God or the 

 love of one's fellow-men for God's sake) is mor- 

 tally sinful. All such offenses are mortal sins 

 according to their species (peccata mortalia ex 

 suo genere). When the will is directed towards 

 an object that is not contrary to charity, though it 

 contain within itself some disorder {inordinatio 

 quaedam), the sin committed is venial according 

 to its species (peccatum veniale ex suo genere). 



Since, however, human acts receive their speci- 

 fication not only from their objects, but likewise 

 from the end or purpose of the agent, a sin 



modica, quod ordinem ilium non inimicitiam divinam incurrit homo." 



perimit, sed tantum in aliquo per- 24 "Peccatum mortale est aversio 



turbat, et tunc dicitur veniale pec- a Deo et conversio ad creaturas cum 



catum, quia de ipso adipisci possu- mutatione centri; ubi vero centrum 



mus cito veniam, pro eo, quod non mutatur, adest peccatum ve- 



gratia non tollitur per ipsum nee niale." (St. Thomas, /. c.) 



