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What (who) is venial - definition
Venial
·adj Allowed; permitted.
II. Venial ·adj Capable of being forgiven; not heinous; excusable; pardonable; as, a venial fault or transgression.
venial
['vi:n??l]
¦ adjective Christian Theology denoting a sin that is not regarded as depriving the soul of divine grace. Often contrasted with mortal.
?(of a fault or offence) slight and pardonable.
Derivatives
veniality -'al?ti noun
venially adverb
Origin
ME: via OFr. from late L. venialis, from venia 'forgiveness'.
Usage
Venal and venial are sometimes confused. Venal means 'susceptible to bribery' (venal politicians), whereas venial is used to refer to a sin or offence that is excusable or pardonable.
venial
a.
1.
Excusable, pardonable.
2.
Allowed, permitted.
Examples of use of venial
1. Catholic teaching distinguishes between lesser venial sins and mortal sins.
2. A lie that causes injury is a mortal offence, but ‘harmless lies are still venial sins.
3. But through it all, it has been easy enough to retain an enduring admiration––even affection––for a president whose sins against decorum and the dignity of his office seemed venial in contrast to the systemic indifference, incompetence, corruption, and constitutional predations of his successor‘s administration.