Degrees Of Sin

When I was a Catholic it was taught to me that sin could be divided into two groups,mortal and venial.
Venal being the little white lies,sins that are bad but not terrible,they might send you to purgatory but you'll be forgiven for them in the end.
Then there are Mortal sins those that could give you a direct ticket into hell unless you repented and asked for real forgiveness.
The Orthodox Religion sees no difference,sin is sin no matter how small or how great,its all the same.
Sin distances us from God,mankind and our selves.
This week in Bible Study we are reading James,the brother of Jesus,in chapter 2:10-11
he says:"For whoever shall keep the whole law and yet stumble in one point,he is guilty of all".
"For he who said do not commit adultery also said do not murder".
What this all means is when you commit a minor sin you are just as guilty as if you transgressed on a more powerful sin.
How can adultery be equal to murder,you may ask?
In order to commit adultery one or both of you must be married and when you have an adulterous relationship,you are dragging not only your own body into this union,but also your unknowing spouse and children.
On the day a person is married they are made as one body,when you do evil with your body you are also dragging your married half into the affair,with you thus stealing their ness.
Now ness is a person's very make up,what makes then who they are,their knowledge of themselves.
Committing adultery is being made less because now you have soiled your partners very being of who they thought they were.
Like the spouse of a faithful loving person,who is trust able and above reproach.
Your act has caused the death of a vowed relationship,the admiration and trust of your children,even before its brought to the light.
All sin is an abomination in the eyes of God.
Lying and cheating,no matter if done for good intentions,is still wrong.
The Ten Commandments were set up to help people understand that if you treat others properly then you will not commit any of these transgressions,because when you love someone you look out only for their well being.
Sin is sin.
There is no distinction,every sin wounds our closeness to God,we move just a few more steps away from him by our own choice.
Most sins are caused by our personal needs,like the seven deadly sins,our own ness choices to be inflated and those around us,are just articles used to gain another step up the ladder of ego,pride,sloth and self absorption.
Do all things with a mind to what you are truly doing,even the simple slips like white lies can cause pain to those you are not intentionally trying to wound.