ther at once or at different times. Circumstances may make the sin
greater or less, and they should be explained in confession.

Q. 1292. Is stealing ever a sacrilege?
A. Stealing is a sacrilege when the thing stolen belongs to the Church
and when the stealing takes place in the Church.

Q. 1293. What sins are equivalent to stealing?
A. All sins of cheating, defrauding or wronging others of their
property; also all sins of borrowing or buying with the intention of
never repaying are equivalent to stealing.

Q. 1294. In what other ways may persons sin against honesty?
A. Persons may sin against honesty also by knowingly receiving, buying
or sharing in stolen goods; likewise by giving or taking bribes for
dishonest purposes.

Q. 1295. {374} What are we commanded by the seventh Commandment?
A. By the seventh Commandment we are commanded to give to all men what
belongs to them and to respect their property.

Q. 1296. How may persons working for others be guilty of dishonesty?
A. Persons working for others may be guilty of dishonesty by idling the
time for which they are paid; also by doing bad work or supplying bad
material without their employer's knowledge.

Q. 1297. In what other way may a person be guilty of dishonesty?
A. A person may be guilty of dishonesty in getting money or goods by
false pretenses and by using either for purposes for which they were not
given.

Q. 1298. {375} What is forbidden by the seventh Commandment?
A. The seventh Commandment forbids all unjust taking or keeping what
belongs to another.

Q. 1299. What must we do with things found?
A. We must return things found to their lawful owners as soon as
possible, and we must also use reasonable means to find the owners if
they are unknown to us.

Q. 1300. What must we do if we discover we have bought stolen goods?
A. If we discover we have bought stolen goods and know their lawful
owners we must return the goods to them as soon as possible without
demanding compensation from the owner for what we paid for the goods.

Q. 1301. {376} Are we bound to restore ill-gotten goods?
A. We are bound to restore ill-gotten goods, or the value of them, as
far as we are able; otherwise we cannot be forgiven.

Q. 1302. What must we do if we cannot restore all we owe, or if the
person to whom we should restore be dead?
A. If we cannot restore all we owe, we must restore as much as we can,
and if the person to whom we should restore be dead we must resto