Magazine content is available exclusively for TIME subscribers.Religion: The Venial Kiss
Is kissing a mortal sin for the unmarried? Worried lovers may relax; it is only venial,* said Rome's clerical monthly, La Palestra del Clero, last week.
The kiss that started the discussion was confessed to his priest by a 15-year-old Italian village boy. Mortal sin, said the priest. The anguished youth went to a second confessor, who told him he had committed only a venial one. Back went the boy to the first priest, who in turn wrote to La Palestra del Clero for guidance.
There are two fundamental church documents on kissing, answered the journal's theological advisers: one by the Council of...
Email, Password or Region is incorrect
A required form parameter was missing.
The System is currently down. Please try again in a few minutes.
Email Address is invalid
Password is blank
Most Popular »
- Your Turn, Canada: A Second-By-Second Look at Jeremy Lin Lighting Up Toronto
- What's in Your Lipstick? FDA Finds Lead in 400 Shades
- Linsanity Heads East, Linfects China and Taiwan
- Iowa Welcomes Back China's Next President
- Love Ever After: A Valentine’s Day Special
- Can Jeremy Lin End The MSG/Time Warner Cable War?
- Rick Santorum Wants to Fight 'The Dangers Of Contraception'
- After Whitney Houston, Musicians Say: I'm Afraid
- 50 Best iPhone Apps 2012
- Top 10 Famous Love Letters
- Harvard's Hoops Star Is Asian. Why's That a Problem?
- With Syria's Rebels: A Visit to a Bombmaker's Factory
- Beirut: Where Valentine's Day Belongs to Another Kind of Saint
- Study: Lead Poisoning Could Lurk in Spices
- Europe's Deep Freeze: Why Climate Change Is Not (Entirely) to Blame
- Children of the New India: How Economic Reforms Impacted Upon the Young
- Friends With Benefits
- Iowa Welcomes Back China's Next President
- The Brain: The Mystery of Consciousness
- What Happens When We Die?
More News from Our Partners
Top Stories on TIME.com
Quotes of the Day »
