Not many people know that they can be held responsible for the sins committed by others and this happens when we cooperate with them.  

Even though, sin is a personal act, when we cooperate with others in committing sin, we, directly or indirectly, share in their responsibility for the sin committed by them. 

The Church has identified nine ways in which we participate in the sins of others, namely:

 

. By counsel.

. By command.

. By consent.

. By provocation.

. By praise or flattery.

. By concealment.

. By partaking.

. By silence.

. By defense of the sinful action.

 

By counsel: We share in others’ sins when we encourage and give advice to them to commit a sin. The person involved might not deliberately want to do a sinful act, but when he or she is encouraged to, that means we are also sharing in their sin even if we are not directly involved in the sin. 

By command: We can share in someone’s sin by giving an authoritative order or directive to someone to carry out a sinful act, for example, when King Herod ordered John the Baptist to be beheaded (Matthew 14:6-21).

By consent: One of the numerous ways to share in the sin of others is through consenting to its commission. In other words, knowing about the person’s intention to commit a sin, and consenting to it or supporting it as a great idea. For example, abortion, euthanasia and so on.