Sarah Mitchell
Scandal, as defined by the Catechism of the Catholic Church, is an attitude or behaviour which leads another to do evil. The Catholic Church considers scandal to be a grave offence, and the sin of scandal is committed when a person leads another into sin through their words or actions. The severity of the sin of scandal is determined by the authority of the person committing it and the weakness of the person being led into sin. Scandal can also occur through omission, such as when a person fails to denounce a sin, giving the impression that it is condoned. The sin of scandal is considered to be a violation of charity and can lead to spiritual death or mortal sin.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Definition | "Scandal is an attitude or behaviour which leads another to do evil" |
| "Scandal is a word or action evil in itself, which occasions another's spiritual ruin" | |
| "Scandal may be the deliberate leading of another into sin" | |
| Nature | "For scandal to exist, it is essential and sufficient...that it be of a nature to induce sin in another" |
| It is not the physical cause of a neighbour's sin, but only the moral cause, or occasion | |
| Active vs. Passive | Active scandal is the act of scandalising, passive scandal is the sin committed in consequence of active scandal |
| Severity | Scandal is more severe when committed by a person of authority |
| Scandal is more severe when the person being scandalised is especially weak | |
| Scandal is more severe when others are deliberately led into grave sin |
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What You'll Learn
Leading others into sin
The sin of scandal is not limited to direct inducement of sin. It can also occur through omission or by giving a bad example. For instance, a pastor may fail to denounce a notorious felon in his parish, leading others to think the Church condones sin. Similarly, a Catholic politician who publicly supports abortion may lead other poorly informed Catholics astray.
The Catechism names two factors that increase the gravity of scandal: the authority of the person committing the scandal and the weakness of the person being scandalised. The more authority the scandaliser has, the more effectively they can influence others, increasing the harm done. The poorly catechised, for instance, may mistake vice for virtue and be led into sin. Scandal can encourage an improper view of reality, causing a person to see good as evil and evil as good.
Scandal is considered a sin against charity, as it induces others to violate virtue. It is also likened to the work of Satan, drawing people into spiritual death or mortal sin. According to Jesus, "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea".
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The authority of the person causing scandal
The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines scandal as "an attitude or behaviour that leads another to do evil". The person who gives scandal becomes their "neighbour's tempter". They "damage virtue and integrity" and may even "draw [their] brother into spiritual death". The Catechism explains that scandal is worse depending on the authority of the person committing it.
For example, it is one thing for a four-year-old to say, "Jesus isn't the Son of God", but it would be another thing entirely for a bishop to say this. Because of the authority of the episcopate, a bishop can influence more people more effectively, increasing the gravity of the harm done to those who hear him. If the faithful (or unfaithful) believe him, they move away from Jesus Christ and the salvation he offers. This example displays a second, closely related element of scandal: it increases when the speaker has a duty to teach the truth. Since people trust their bishops to teach them the true Catholic faith, their errors are particularly harmful. Even when the faithful don't believe it, the above statement is still scandalous. The faithful feel betrayed by their shepherd, who should be witnessing to Christ's truth. This can cause a mistrust of the hierarchy and a disrespect for the priesthood.
The Catechism names two more factors that can increase the gravity of scandal. It becomes more grave when the scandalized person is especially weak or when others are deliberately led into grave sin. Given the poorly formed faith of so many Catholics, this means that today the opportunities for scandal are many. The improperly catechized can easily mistake vice for virtue and be led into sin. In cases where scandal occurs but is less grave, it may lead to a simple misunderstanding. In the graver cases described above, scandal can encourage a gravely improper view of reality, to the point that a person sees good as evil and evil as good. In the most severe cases, as when a Catholic leader endorses a sinful lifestyle, someone could get the wrong idea about God, the Church, or salvation, causing him to run towards hell while thinking that he is closing in on heaven.
For another example of scandal caused by truth, consider a situation in which a notorious felon attends a parish, and everyone knows what he’s doing. When confronted by upset parishioners, the pastor replies, “Look, he really loves his family. His many good actions should speak for themselves”. In this case, the pastor’s words may be true, but he scandalizes by omission: he does not denounce the sin. This could easily lead the less knowledgeable to think that the Church condones certain sins. There’s a difference between the natural consequences of an action and unintended or unlikely consequences. In the previous two examples, the speaker unintentionally scandalized through imprudence and omission. However, if we proclaim God’s love to a troubled soul, and he takes that as a catalyst to double down on his despair, we have not given scandal.
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The weakness of the person being scandalised
The Catholic Church defines scandal as "an attitude or behaviour that leads another to do evil". The Catechism names two factors that can increase the gravity of scandal: the authority of the one committing the scandal, and the weakness of the person being scandalised.
The gravity of scandal is greater when the person being scandalised is especially weak. The improperly catechised can easily mistake vice for virtue and be led into sin. In severe cases, a person may see good as evil and evil as good. For example, when a Catholic leader endorses a sinful lifestyle, someone could get the wrong idea about God, the Church, or salvation, causing them to move further away from God under the illusion that they are drawing closer.
The Catechism also notes that scandal may be incurred when an innocent act becomes an occasion of sin to the weak. However, such acts should not be foregone if important goods are at stake.
People are said to be pharisaically scandalised when they maliciously misinterpret the good or indifferent actions of a person due to their own extraordinary moral weakness or ignorance, finding occasion to evil in what they hear or see someone doing.
In summary, the weakness of the person being scandalised is an important factor in determining the gravity of a scandal. The more vulnerable or ignorant the person is, the more likely they are to be led into sin or to misinterpret the actions of others as scandalous.
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Passive and active scandal
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, scandal is defined as "an attitude or behaviour that leads another to do evil". Passive and active scandals are two types of scandals. Passive scandal is when an observer takes offence at someone else's act, which was initially good. The act itself was good, but because of some defect in the observer, the observer finds the good act of the other person an obstacle. Passive scandal is a sin committed as a consequence of an active scandal. Passive scandal is further divided into scandal given and scandal received. Scandal given is a passive scandal in response to an act that is objectively an occasion of sin. Scandal received is a sin committed in response to an act that cannot be objectively considered a temptation to sin. The scandal of the weak is a sin arising from the scandalized person's ignorance or lack of self-restraint. The pharisaical scandal is a sin arising from malice or evil inclinations.
Active scandal is a mortal sin. It is a sin in the person who gives scandal. It is direct when the person who commits it intends to induce another to sin. It is accidental when it is beside the agent's intention. For example, when a man does not intend by his inordinate deed or word to occasion another's spiritual downfall but merely to satisfy his own will. Active scandal is always a sin, and it always begins with some sin. It is a sin contrary to charity.
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Scandal by omission
The Catholic Church defines scandal as "an attitude or behaviour that leads another to do evil". The Catechism of the Catholic Church further explains that scandal is greater according to the authority of the one scandalizing. For instance, it is more scandalous for a bishop to deny that "Jesus is the Son of God" than a four-year-old doing the same. This is because the bishop has more authority and influence, and there is an expectation that they teach the truth.
Another example of scandal by omission can be seen in the Catholic Church's response to the sex abuse crisis. In this case, the Vatican emphasized the responsibility of diocesan bishops to handle sex-abuse complaints, but failed to address the consequences if these bishops did not meet their responsibilities. This omission led to further scandal and undermined the credibility of the bishops.
To avoid scandal by omission, it is important to speak the truth in charity and within the proper context. This means being attentive to the condition and disposition of those we speak to and ensuring that our message is not misinterpreted as endorsing sinful behaviour.
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Frequently asked questions
The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines scandal as “an attitude or behaviour that leads another to do evil”. This can be through action or omission, and the more authority the person committing the scandal has, the more grave the scandal is. Scandal can lead to a simple misunderstanding, or in more severe cases, it can encourage a gravely improper view of reality, causing someone to see good as evil and evil as good.
Some examples of committing the sin of scandal include a Catholic leader endorsing a sinful lifestyle, a priest who abuses a child, a Catholic politician who publicly supports abortion, and a business manager who tells their staff to lie to customers.
Active scandal is when someone leads another into sin through their actions or words. Passive scandal is the sin committed by another in response to active scandal. Passive scandal can be further divided into scandal given, when the act of the scandalizer is intended to occasion sin, and scandal received, when the action of the one who scandalizes is due to ignorance, weakness, or malice and evil inclinations.
