--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I cannot understand how anyone conscious…" description: "\"I cannot understand how anyone conscious of mortal sin can laugh or be merry.\" — Thomas Aquinas" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/906/thomas-aquinas-837_conscious_i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious_771117.jpg" --- # I cannot understand how anyone conscious of mortal sin can… ![“I cannot understand how anyone conscious of mortal sin can laugh or be merry.” quote by Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/906/thomas-aquinas-837_conscious_i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious_771117.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/906/thomas-aquinas-837_conscious_i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious_771117.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/906/thomas-aquinas-837_conscious_i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious_771117.jpg) > “I cannot understand how anyone conscious of mortal sin can laugh or be merry.” [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mortal sin corrupts the soul, making joy inappropriate for the conscious. **In simple terms:** Serious sin hinders true happiness. Key Takeaway Seek repentance before joy. Themes sin morality spiritual health Mood reflective solemn Type theological philosophical When to use this quote - confession - spiritual counseling - personal reflection Key Concepts theology ethics human nature Questions to Reflect On - How does guilt affect your joy? - What steps lead to spiritual peace? A Different Perspective Joy can be found in repentance too. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Laugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laugh/) [Merry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/merry/) [Mortal sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mortal-sin/) [Mortals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mortals/) [Sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sin/) ## Related quotes > [ It \[covetousness\] is a sin against God, just as all mortal sins, in as much as man condemns things eternal for the sake of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/it-covetousness-is-a-sin-against-god-just-as-all-mortal-sins-in-as/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [Charity is not a potency of the soul, because if it were it would be natural. Nor is it a passion, because it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/charity-is-not-a-potency-of-the-soul-because-if-it-were-it-would-be/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [“The truth is an offense but not a sin Is he who laugh last, children! is he who win Is a foolish dog bark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-marley/the-truth-is-an-offense-but-not-a-sin-is-he-who-laugh-last-children/) [Bob Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-marley/) > [Thank and glorify His Beloved Son, who, with indescribable suffering, gave His life on Calvary's cross to pay the debt of mortal sin. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/thank-and-glorify-his-beloved-son-who-with-indescribable-suffering/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [Saint Teresa, as the Roman Rota attests, never fell into any mortal sin; but still Our Lord showed her the place prepared for her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alphonsus-liguori/saint-teresa-as-the-roman-rota-attests-never-fell-into-any-mortal-sin/) [Alphonsus Liguori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alphonsus-liguori/) > [We should all realize that no matter where or how a man dies, if he is in the state of mortal sin and does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-of-assisi/we-should-all-realize-that-no-matter-where-or-how-a-man-dies-if-he-is/) [Francis of Assisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-of-assisi/) > [Tourism is a mortal sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/tourism-is-a-mortal-sin/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [Using adverbs is a mortal sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elmore-leonard/using-adverbs-is-a-mortal-sin/) [Elmore Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elmore-leonard/) > [And when children begin to use their reason, fathers and mothers should take great pains to fill their hearts with the fear of God.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-francis-de-sales/and-when-children-begin-to-use-their-reason-fathers-and-mothers/) [Saint Francis de Sales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-francis-de-sales/) > [When you see a condemned man on his way to the gallows, it moves you to pity. If you could do something to free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-mary-claret/when-you-see-a-condemned-man-on-his-way-to-the-gallows-it-moves-you/) [Anthony Mary Claret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-mary-claret/) > [The cumulative weight of all mortal sins--past, present, and future--pressed upon that perfect, sinless, and sensitive Soul! All our infirmities and sicknesses were somehow,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/the-cumulative-weight-of-all-mortal-sins-past-present-and-future/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [He would be guilty of mortal sin, because he exposes himself to the danger of grievously offending God. Hence, before he acts he must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alphonsus-liguori/he-would-be-guilty-of-mortal-sin-because-he-exposes-himself-to-the/) [Alphonsus Liguori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alphonsus-liguori/) > [Half-instructed confessors have done my soul great harm; for I could not always have such learned ones as I would have desired. They certainly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-of-vila/half-instructed-confessors-have-done-my-soul-great-harm-for-i-could/) [Teresa of Avila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-of-vila/) > [The works of the righteous would be mortal sins if they would not be feared as mortal sins by the righteous themselves out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/the-works-of-the-righteous-would-be-mortal-sins-if-they-would-not-be/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [This I say, because God showed me somewhat of his truth, in order that I might know what man is without him; that is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-of-genoa/this-i-say-because-god-showed-me-somewhat-of-his-truth-in-order-that/) [Catherine of Genoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-of-genoa/) ## More by Thomas Aquinas > [Grace does not destroy nature, it perfects it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/grace-does-not-destroy-nature-it-perfects-it/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [Justice is in subjects as well as in rulers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/justice-is-in-subjects-as-well-as-in-rulers/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [“A capacity as such is directed to an act. Wherefore we seek to know the nature of a capacity from the act to which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/a-capacity-as-such-is-directed-to-an-act-wherefore-we-seek-to-know/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [“Yet no-one can say that God has not a Word, for it would follow that God is most foolish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/yet-no-one-can-say-that-god-has-not-a-word-for-it-would-follow-that/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [Unbelief is the greatest of sins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/unbelief-is-the-greatest-of-sins/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [If forgers and malefactors are put to death by the secular power, there is much more reason for excommunicating and even putting to death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/if-forgers-and-malefactors-are-put-to-death-by-the-secular-power/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [When fear is excessive it can make many a man despair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/when-fear-is-excessive-it-can-make-many-a-man-despair/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [Now, nothing can be brought from potentiality to actual existence except through something actually existing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/now-nothing-can-be-brought-from-potentiality-to-actual-existence/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [To convert somebody go and take them by the hand and guide them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/to-convert-somebody-go-and-take-them-by-the-hand-and-guide-them/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [ By the divine providence \[animals\] are intended for man's use... Hence it is not wrong for man to make use of them, either by… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/by-the-divine-providence-animals-are-intended-for-man-s-use-hence-it/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [“What causes love, since it is a passion, is its object; and since it is a sort of affinity or agreement with the object,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/what-causes-love-since-it-is-a-passion-is-its-object-and-since-it-is/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [The image of God always abides in the soul, whether this image be obsolete and clouded over as to amount to almost nothing; or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/the-image-of-god-always-abides-in-the-soul-whether-this-image-be/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [Charity, by which God and neighbor are loved, is the most perfect friendship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/charity-by-which-god-and-neighbor-are-loved-is-the-most-perfect/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [Beauty adds to goodness a relation to the cognitive faculty: so that "good" means that which simply pleases the appetite; while the "beautiful" is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/beauty-adds-to-goodness-a-relation-to-the-cognitive-faculty-so-that/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [“God is not, like creatures, made up of parts. God is spirit, without bodily dimensions. Firstly, no body can cause change without itself being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/god-is-not-like-creatures-made-up-of-parts-god-is-spirit-without/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) [Explore all 357 Thomas Aquinas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) ## More Conscious quotes > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [Woman, in short, has an unconscious life, man a conscious life, and the genius the most conscious life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/woman-in-short-has-an-unconscious-life-man-a-conscious-life-and-the/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Just as everybody has the vote including women, I think children should, because as a child is conscious of itself then it has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/just-as-everybody-has-the-vote-including-women-i-think-children/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [If you are not conscious of all of the different parts of yourself, the part of yourself that is the strongest will win out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/if-you-are-not-conscious-of-all-of-the-different-parts-of-yourself/) [Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/) > [One of the noblest words in our language is "grace," defined as "unearned blessing." We live by grace far more than by anything else.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-elton-trueblood/one-of-the-noblest-words-in-our-language-is-grace-defined-as-unearned/) [D. Elton Trueblood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-elton-trueblood/) > [Repugnant is a creature who would squander the ability To lift an eye to heaven, conscious of his fleeting time here](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/repugnant-is-a-creature-who-would-squander-the-ability-to-lift-an-eye/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) > [The goal of the Creator is for each entity to make a conscious choice to again seek Oneness, out of our own free will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wilcock/the-goal-of-the-creator-is-for-each-entity-to-make-a-conscious-choice/) [David Wilcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wilcock/) > [I know one thing: that you can do a lot of things but if you don't educate people into conscious anarchism it gets frittered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/i-know-one-thing-that-you-can-do-a-lot-of-things-but-if-you-don-t/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [All black people who are even minimally conscious, black people who have ever experienced Europe's technological power crusading in the vanguard of a civilizing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-nkosi/all-black-people-who-are-even-minimally-conscious-black-people-who/) [Lewis Nkosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-nkosi/) > [ A mind conscious of right laughs at the falsehoods of rumour. \[Lat., Conscia mens recti famae mendacia risit.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/a-mind-conscious-of-right-laughs-at-the-falsehoods-of-rumour-lat/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [I don't think my paintings are self-conscious but you feel the consciousness of them. Without them being self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-think-my-paintings-are-self-conscious-but-you-feel-the/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) Browse all 3,716 Conscious quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I cannot understand how anyone conscious of mortal sin can laugh or be merry.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Aquinas" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious-of-mortal-sin-can-laugh-or/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conscious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious-of-mortal-sin-can-laugh-or/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/906/thomas-aquinas-837_conscious_i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious_771117.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/906/thomas-aquinas-837_conscious_i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious_771117.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/906/thomas-aquinas-837_conscious_i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious_771117.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I cannot understand how anyone conscious of mortal sin can laugh or be merry.” — Thomas Aquinas", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Thomas Aquinas", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I cannot understand how anyone conscious...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious-of-mortal-sin-can-laugh-or/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/i-cannot-understand-how-anyone-conscious-of-mortal-sin-can-laugh-or/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```