Ecclesiasticus 5:1-8 / Mark 9:41-50
We have been taught that there are two categories of sin - mortal sin and venial sin.
Mortal sin is grave and serious. It results in a complete separation from God and warrants eternal damnation.
Venial sin, or "forgivable" sin, does not concern a grave matter, or that it is committed without full knowledge, or that it is not committed with both deliberate and complete consent.
Having said all that, it still cannot be denied that sin is sin, and the fact is that sin and God cannot co-exist!
Yes, sin, regardless of whether it is mortal or venial, is serious and woe to us if we take it too lightly because that would mean that we have fallen into the devil's deception.
The 1st reading urges us - Do not say, "I have sinned, and what happened to me?" for the Lord's forbearance is long.
Yes, the Lord is loving and forgiving and merciful and compassionate.
But the 1st reading also warns us not to delay our return to the Lord, do not put it off day after day, for suddenly the Lord's wrath will blaze out and it will be tragic for us.
In the gospel, Jesus is no less serious about sin when He used words like "if your hand should cause you to sin, cut it off" and "if your foot should cause you to sin, cut it off".
Yet it still must be reiterated that the Lord is loving and forgiving and merciful and compassionate. And that should make us repent and detest sin, because God and sin cannot co-exist.
As St. Therese of the Child Jesus said : A pure heart knows no evil.