Hi everyone, i have a question about consequences of sin. Do we have a duty to undo something that would not have happened without sin, except in situations where we are talking about compensation for damages due to theft? For example, a person committed a sin (or several sins) and received a certain result. Will maintaining this result be a continuation of the sin/a new sin?
I think that one of the requirements for penance is to make restitution if possible.
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I think I understand what you are asking.
Say someone gets pregnant outside of Marriage, would it be a moral good to then abort the baby, as though the pregnancy never happened? No, that would be adding to the sin, even more gravely than the original sin that caused the pregnancy. Pregnancy is not in of itself sinful, even if how the conception happened was sinful.
How about in the case of a gas station clerk who steels lottery tickets and then wins the lottery! Would refusing the winnings make right the sin of stealing the tickets that had occurred? No, but it would certainly be show contrition and could be viewed as penitential.
Whether or not the results of sin should be undone depends on what that means. Aborting a human being is evil. Aborting the winning lottery ticket is not evil, and could be even just.
Now, what if you take the lottery winnings and instead of keeping it for yourself, you give it to a good cause. I would consider this still sinful, even though good might come from it. The ends do not justify the means.
Hope this helps : )
As has been noted, there is generally an obligation to make restitution.
There can be nuance here. After all some situations are not possible to remedy (at least not without causing disproportionate harm). So there are situations where we are not obliged to make perfect restitution.
While I might be wrong, having read this and your other question (about obsessive thoughts) I am concerned, @Inveilis that you may have a scrupulous conscience.
I would encourage you to speak with a confessor (or, alternatively, outside of Confession with a priest) about this possibility.
Considering the possibility that you have a scrupulous conscience, I would advise you strongly against worrying too much about restitution apart from very straightforward cases (e.g. if you stole something, return it; if you have slandered someone, reveal the truth).
Just because some good effect of a sin remains, does not necessarily mean that the sin remains or that there is a new sin committed. God brings good out of evil. The Church calls the sin of our first parents a felix culpa (happy fault) because it gained us the great Redeemer.
May God bless you with his peace.
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