Article II: On Spiritual Almsgiving, or Fraternal Correction

S. Th. II-II, q. 33; De Virt., q. 3.

935. There are seven spiritual alms: 1. to pray for all, concerning which it is spoken in the treatise on Religion; 2. to forgive the one offending, concerning which it was said above, n. 898; 3. to console the sorrowful; and 4. to bear the burdensome and troublesome, which pertain rather to those who are constituted in office; 5. to teach the ignorant; 6. to counsel the doubtful; 7. to correct the sinner. Concerning these things something must be said here, especially concerning the last, which is the chief one and presents a special difficulty.

936. Correction of one sinning is one thing judicial, another fraternal:

1. The former is applied a) against sin insofar as it is an evil for others, especially for the common good; b) and is done for repairing order; c) through punishment of the delinquent. The latter is a) a remedy of sin insofar as it is an evil of the sinner himself; b) and is done by simple admonition of him; and c) is ordered to his amendment.

2. The former is an act of justice; the latter is the chief spiritual alms, whence it is an act of mercy commanded by charity.

3. The former is done by juridic action by a superior as judge; the latter is done by neighbor as by a brother for the good of a brother, and if it is done by a superior, it is not done by him as by a superior, but as by a private person. Hence it is defined: an admonition of a neighbor who is a sinner, made by a private or quasi-private person so that the neighbor may be amended; or, with St. Thomas, IV Sent., d. 19, q. 2, a. 1: an admonition of a brother concerning the amendment of faults, proceeding from fraternal charity.

Between each is paternal correction, which is done by a superior with authority, but without the form of judgment, for amendment and for removing scandal.

937. From natural and divine law there is given a precept of fraternal correction, grave from its genus. - It is proved:

a) From St. Matthew XVIII, 15: "If your brother shall have sinned against you, go and correct him between you and him alone; if he shall hear you, you shall have gained your brother" (cf. Lev. XIX, 17; Eccli. XVII, 12; XIX, 13 sq.; Lk. XVII, 3; Gal. VI, 1; I Thess. V, 14; II Thess. III, 15).

b) From reason: By the law of nature and charity we are bound to assist neighbor bodily in need; therefore much more one spiritually in need. - Moreover, we ought to love neighbor; but dilection of neighbor includes willing and furnishing good to him; therefore much more averting from him a grave evil, such as certainly is mortal sin.

That precept, like charity, in itself obliges all toward all, that is, not only superiors, who are bound to correct both from office or justice, and also from the order of charity because they are more fit for it and more conjoined to subjects; but it also obliges equals, indeed subjects and sinners, although these are excused by many circumstances, as not always fit for correction.

Superiors are parents, the husband, tutors, teachers and preceptors, masters with respect to servants, bishops, prelates and parish priests, confessors with respect to penitents, preachers with respect to hearers.

938. Conditions required for fraternal correction. - Five conditions are simultaneously required so that this precept obliges here and now:

1. Certain matter, that is, a grave sin certainly committed, in which it is foreseen that neighbor will relapse, or in which it is feared that he will die, or will not do penance at the due time.

It is said: grave sin, because since every correction is burdensome to the one correcting and includes at least slight inconvenience, in itself and ordinarily it does not oblige for removing a slight evil from neighbor. Then morally certain knowledge of grave sin is required on account of the danger of one's own rashness and of another's offense; but if it is doubtful, a private person ought not and cannot inquire into the life of neighbor, because it would be very burdensome and hateful to others (Prov. XXIV, 15); otherwise sometimes a superior, who has the care and providence of others.1

2. Necessity, that is, probability that neighbor is not going to amend himself spontaneously and that another equally fit is not going to correct him.

3. Utility, that is, founded hope of amendment, or probability that the correction is not going to harm (for example, by impelling to new or graver sins), but is going to profit, either immediately or at least after some time. For when the end ceases, the precept ceases.

Hence a) if correction is doubtfully going to profit but certainly not going to harm, it must be done;

b) if the utility is not probable but doubtful, so that amendment is equally hoped for and harm feared, in itself and generally it is to be omitted, because the negative precept of not harming obliges more than the affirmative precept of doing good;

c) nevertheless in such doubt, accidentally and exceptionally, it must be done if it is foreseen that neighbor is going to die in sin, or if a greater evil is feared which ought to be prevented, for example, dishonor of God, irreverence toward religion, scandal or damage of many or of the commonwealth, indeed the damage of one if it is greater or is feared more than the damage of the one sinning; likewise if from office the correction must be made by a superior, who is bound to warn even with modest hope, lest discipline be weakened or scandal harm others.

4. Possibility, that is, that it can be done without too great inconvenience of the one correcting, such as is not the danger of some indignation, which is almost always present.

But the greater the necessity of neighbor is (in extreme necessity even with danger of life), or the gravity of the sin, or the probability of fruit, or the obligation of correcting, so much the greater inconvenience must be undergone. And indeed superiors are bound even with great inconvenience in grave necessity, indeed with danger of life if they are bound from justice, as bishops, parish priests, magistrates; or with some great detriment, as parents, masters, a husband, teachers; - on the contrary, servants and subjects are rarely bound, since the matter is easily doubtful in a particular case.

5. Opportunity, that is, that the time, place, and other circumstances suited to amendment are present here and now: for an affirmative precept does not oblige for always, but only in given circumstances.

Therefore it is not always to be applied immediately, but often is to be deferred to an opportune time, when fruit is hoped for more. Indeed sometimes the repetition of sin can be permitted so that the sinner may come to his senses more fervently, if immediate fruit is not hoped for. But if immediate fruit is hoped for, let it be done at once, if scandal harmful to others is to be removed, or if the honor of God or of neighbor is to be defended.

1. Some add: also a private person, if there were question of averting a most grave evil, for example, of homicide, or of common damage. But then there is not present an obligation to the amendment of a brother, but to averting the evil of another.

939. The mode and order to be observed in correction. - Fraternal correction can be done either by suitable speech, or by equivalent deeds or signs: by showing a sorrowful face, by diverting the conversation to other things, by withdrawing temporal help, or by other modes by which neighbor is warned openly or implicitly.

Nevertheless, let it always be done with great prudence and affection of charity, and indeed toward inferiors and equals with kindness and love (Gal. VI, 1), toward superiors with humility and reverence (I Tim. V, 1).

Lest one sin against justice by wounding the reputation of neighbor without necessity (Mt. XVIII, 15), the order to be observed in correction is prescribed: first let it be done secretly, and this several times, so long as fruit is hoped for; but if it does not profit, let one or two witnesses be brought in; and if it still does not profit, let denunciation be made to the superior, who first corrects paternally, then, if it shall have been necessary, also judicially. But that order can be changed so that denunciation is made immediately: a) if the fault is public, known to the greater part of the community or shortly to be made known; b) if it is foreseen that private warning is not going to profit, especially if the necessity of correction urges, as if the sin is to the harm of the community or religion, or to grave damage of a third party (for example, of infamy, of the corruption of others); c) if amendment through the superior is foreseen to be much more secure and fruitful, provided the superior is prudent and discreet; d) if some law imposes denunciation, as for confessors soliciting.

940. To omit fraternal correction is a mortal sin from its genus. According to St. Thomas, if someone presumes concerning another that he could draw him back from sin, and nevertheless, on account of fear or cupidity or shame, absolutely refuses to make correction, he sins mortally, because he places fear, etc., before fraternal charity. But if someone from these is only made slower to correct, yet in such a way that, if it were clear to him that he could draw his brother back from sin, he would not omit it, he sins only venially, because the character of the end is not taken away; for example, if he were negligent in considering the circumstances and opportunity in which he is bound to correct, or culpably estimating himself not fit for it.

941. The matter of correction is only grave sins committed, and therefore the following are not:

1. Sins to be committed: for these are matter of warning (to counsel the doubtful), which obliges in the same circumstances as correction.

2. Material sins done from invincible ignorance or at least from ignorance not gravely culpable: these are matter of instruction (to teach the ignorant), which also is of precept in the same circumstances as correction, not only from reverence toward the law but also from charity, because depraved ignorance of those things which someone is bound to know is an evil to be removed from neighbor just as sin is; yet less strictly and often under venial sin only, because it is a lesser evil. Hence according to many it is probable that private persons are not bound to instruct others as regards material sins committed only against positive law (divine or human), because these are not intrinsically evil and therefore of lesser moment; it would be otherwise if someone were bound from office to teach others, or if from ignorance there arose damage of the ignorant person, or of a third party, or scandal, or irreverence toward God or religion, etc.

3. Venial sins. Nevertheless these accidentally can be matter of correction, instruction, or warning, to be done even under grave obligation sometimes, both by reason of the effect, for example, if from them there follows proximate danger of sinning mortally, or great scandal, or some other grave evil for religion or the common good, such as disturbance of tranquility in a community, or relaxation of regular discipline in a monastery; and by reason of office, for superiors, because they have care of others.

942. Instruction of the ignorant is useful, and therefore, the other conditions being supposed, generally it must be done:

1. If ignorance is vincible and gravely culpable, for example, if someone is not in good faith but doubts, as if he asks.

2. If ignorance will shortly become vincible, as if someone is ignorant of laws which cannot long be unknown, for example, the first principles and first conclusions of the law of nature, or the obvious duties of one's state (of priest, father, judge).

3. If ignorance is not gravely culpable, but harmful to the ignorant person, for example, if it concerns things necessary for salvation, or induces an occasion or proximate danger of sinning or of persevering in sin, or is a cause of estimating that to be sin which is not, or that to be mortal which is venial.

4. Even if ignorance is invincible and favorable, but warning will probably be profitable, at least after a time, and graver inconveniences are not feared, such as infamy for others, scandal, hatreds, quarrels, for example, from the dissolution of an invalid marriage.

On the contrary, generally it is to be omitted on account of a greater evil, namely, if ignorance is not gravely culpable and:

a) the warning is doubtfully going to profit the ignorant person and equally doubtfully going to harm (with a positive doubt), because formal sin is more to be guarded against than material sin;¹

¹ Nevertheless in a negative doubt, or one improperly so called, whether the warning is going to profit or harm, it must be done, because no one is presumed evil unless it is proved.

b) more so if it probably is not going to profit, unless, however, greater damage is feared, whether public (great scandal), or of a third party (omission of restitution), or of the ignorant person himself (a depraved custom, for example, of pollution, difficult to conquer);

c) most of all if it certainly is not going to profit; unless, however, silence is equivalent to approval (for example, if a priest or preceptor, when asked or seeing fornication, pollution, theft, is silent), or unless from not warning there follows great damage of many or public damage, because the common good or the good of many is to be preferred to the private good of one (thus, in itself, a priest invalidly consecrating or teaching errors, spouses who exercise the marital act so that they impede generation), but not if there follows the damage of one, because the spiritual good of the ignorant person can be preferred.

943. Practical observations. - 1. Since the conditions required for the obligation of fraternal correction rarely are present for private persons (unless they are familiarly conjoined), these are rarely bound to correction, especially toward unknown persons whose disposition is unknown, and therefore amendment is very doubtful. A fortiori the scrupulous, who on account of lack of discretion would always think themselves bound to correct others, or would always doubt concerning this, and very often would commit imprudences, are rarely bound to it.

2. A sinner is bound to amend himself for correction: a) if he is a superior, because he is bound to procure those things which are necessary for rightly undertaking his office, among which is his own amendment; b) if he is a scandal to others, because he is bound to abstain from scandal; c) if neighbor is going to die in mortal sin unless he himself, having been amended, corrects him, because there then seems to be a grave necessity to which he ought to give assistance with some inconvenience.

3. In communities, colleges, etc., generally it is expedient that correction be done by way of denunciation to the superior: for he who denounced would easily be known, if he first warned privately; indeed, where there is question of grave damage of the community (not of one or another person), fellow residents unwilling to denounce could not be absolved.

4. As regards denunciation before a superior, St. Alphonsus notes:

a) If it is certainly clear that a brother has perfectly amended a hidden sin, and from it there is no danger of relapse or of damage to himself or to another, it is not licit to denounce him to a father or prelate, unless the brother expressly consents to that denunciation.

b) It is not licit to bring a fault to mediate superiors, if the immediate superior can correct by himself and there is no probable suspicion that this latter will fail in his office; for the reputation of neighbor, insofar as can be done, must be cared for.

c) A superior, by force of knowledge obtained through private denunciation made to him as father, cannot publicly warn or judicially proceed, because the fault was not manifested to him as judge.