Australian rePublic wrote:Is it a sin to lie to my grandmother with dimentia? We have to lie to her all the time for her own good. For example, when she goes to day care, we have to lie to her and tell she's going to work. Because of her domentia, she thinks she's going to work, and she won't go if we tell her otherwise. Is that a sin?
Anne Frank: the Police ask "Are there any Jews hiding in your attic?" Augustine and Kant assert that lying is a bigger sin than murder. All sane people assert that murder is a bigger sin than lying.
Your example offers small lie versus medium harm, therefore the lie is righteous. I assert that in a situation of HUGE lie causes small harm then Truth is righteous.
9th Commandment: thou shalt not bear false witness: if you testify that an innocent did a crime worth 10 years jail, that is a Huge sin; if you testify that the innocent did a crime worth 10 dollar fine, that is a small sin.