Posted on 10/08/2014 10:29:54 AM PDT by Morgana
There’s a necessary humility in acknowledging our utter inability to live chastely outside the grace of God. The first step, it seems to me, is to acknowledge our complete need for God in winning the battle. Thomas Merton wrote that “real self-conquest is the conquest of the self by the Holy Spirit.” This is most true in the battle for chastity.
St. John Cassian teaches that human effort alone will never make someone chaste:
If we really desire to enter into this spiritual combat on the same terms as the spostle (2 Tim. 4:7), let us concentrate our every effort at dominating this unclean spirit by placing our confidence not in our own forces but on the help of God. Human effort will never be able to win through here. For the soul will be attacked by this vice as long as it does not recognize that it is in a war beyond its powers and that it cannot obtain victory by its own effort unless it is shored up by the help and protection of the Lord (5)
God’s grace is necessary for all virtue, he continues, but a “special gift” is necessary for chastity:
In a certain sense, to escape the flesh is to remain in the body while surpassing nature: to remain surrounded by fragile carnality but not to feel the stings of the flesh. Thus it is impossible, as we have said, for us to fly to such an exalted and heavenly reward on our own wings, unless the grace of God lift us up from the slime of the earth by the gift of chastity. There is no virtue which renders the lives of carnal men more similar to that of the angelic spirits than the attainment and the gift of chastity. As the Apostle says, while still living on earth they have their homeland in heaven (Phil 3:20). They already possess in their fragile flesh here in this life that which the saints are promised to possess in the future when they have left their carnal corruptibility behind (6).
“Carnal corruptibility” sounds a little stuffy and theological. But we all know the truth of our hearts: like St. Paul says, so often we do that which we don’t want to do, and don’t do that which we desire to do. That’s our carnal corruptibility, and we all have it. (I seem to have it in spades!)
Acknowledging our utter need for the grace and special aid from God to win the virtue of chastity, however, does not mean that we just sit by and let him win the victory. No—we need to strive for the virtue, in the way an athlete readies himself for a contest:
Hear what the apostle says: “Everyone who enters a contest abstains from all things” (1 Cor. 9:25). Let us inquire what are “these things” that he mentions so as to acquire instruction for spiritual combat comparable to the carnal combat. For those who desire to struggle according to the rules in this visible contest do not have the freedom to use just any foods that appetite might suggest, but only those laid down as the training regime for those battles. Not only must they abstain from forbidden foods and all drunkenness and tippling, but also from inertia, idleness and ennui [listlessness] so as to increase their strength by daily exercise and assiduous concentration (7.1).
If we’re going to achieve chastity, we have to exercise, and build patterns in our lives that replace the patterns of the past. We have to forego certain things we find desirable, fixing our eyes on a goal for the higher good. We need spiritual disciplines, like frequent attendance at Mass, frequent use of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, reading of Scripture, prayer, reading the Divine Office, etc.
If we sometimes despair at our failures, or the seeming impossibility of living a chaste and continent life, these words from St. Leo the Great can bring us comfort:
And lest we should be led by despair into sheer inaction, he promises that the divine power shall make those things possible which are to man impossible from his own lack of power… In him therefore we find our model of patience, in whom we have our hope of life eternal; for if we suffer with him, we shall also reign with him (2 Tim. 2:12), since, as the apostle says, he that says he abides in Christ ought himself also to walk as he walked (1 John 2:6). Otherwise we make a vain presence and show, if we follow not his steps… and assuredly they would not be irksome to us, but would free us from all dangers, if we loved nothing but what he commanded us to love.
The challenge for me is to trust that God makes the impossible possible. I long to see chastity integrated into my life like it was integrated into the lives of Mary, the Mother of God, and her chaste spouse, St. Joseph, as well as in all of the other great saints of the Church who have gone before us. I thank God for the example of someone like David: even though he committed adultery with Bathsheba and arranged to have her husband killed in order to marry her, God still forgave him. It has always comforted me to know that David, such a passionate man who clearly had strong sexual urges was still called “a man after God’s own heart.” It has always helped me to realize that God’s forgiveness and redemption are so powerful that, after our mistakes, the rewriting of the story makes the story that much better. Christ the Redeemer came from the line of the union of David and Bathsheba, giving flesh to the words of St. Paul when he tells us, “where sin is, grace abounds.”
I also find inspiring the example of St. Augustine, who battled so much with unchastity. His words in the Confessions echo how often I have felt in my life, when he said, “Give me chastity…but just not yet!”
St. Augustine ran the race though, even if reluctantly at first—something I find myself sometimes doing too. Thank God we have saints like Augustine to pray for us, saints who also knew the delights of sexual pleasure, and how enticingly such pleasure can lure us away from that which we truly desire. And from he who will truly fulfill us.
St. Augustine, pray for us.
Mary, Mother Most Chaste, pray for us.
St. Joseph, Chaste Guardian of the Virgin, pray for us.
King David, pray for us.
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Daniel Mattson is a writer and public speaker who focuses on sharing the good news of the Catholic Church's teaching on sexuality and chastity. The story of his conversion to the Church from a life of active homosexuality is one of the three stories featured in the Courage Apostolate's new documentary, Desire of the Everlasting Hills.
He entered into full communion with the Catholic Church in 2010, primarily because of the Catholic Church's teaching on homosexuality. His message is simple: the path to fulfillment and peace for the person who lives with same sex attractions can only be found in the teachings of the Catholic Church. He is a frequent speaker at events across the country, including at Catholic high schools, parishes, seminaries and Diocesan clergy gatherings and conferences. He often appears on Catholic Radio programs such as the Al Kresta Show, the Teresa Tomeo Show and Catholic Answers Live. He has been a guest on EWTN's, Life On The Rock, and will be appearing soon on the EWTN program Women of Grace. His writing has appeared in First Things, Crisis Magazine, Catholic Answers Magazine and other Catholic publications.
His personal blog is LettersToChristopher.wordpress.com, and his writing can also be found at JoyfulPilgrims.com. He can be contacted for speaking engagements at letterstochristopherblog@gmail.com. When not speaking or writing, Daniel enjoys his career as a professional orchestral musician.
What sources? Well, let’s begin with the New Testament:
“Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him.”
Mark 3:31
As far as names go, James the Just, is the most well known.
Yup...She & Joe were very familiar with each other after all those kids.
Correct—half brothers!
Matthew 13:55-56
Which (as she was married to their father) was chaste.
I wasn’t there, you could be right!
You have a point there!
Never thought of it like that.
Accusatory? No, not at all, I am merely curious at what seemed to me, laughable, unsupported speculation.
Really, accusatory, are you guilty of something? I didn’t even post to you but you should feel free to answer all of my questions with something a bit less vague, not just the ones you think you can handle otherwise you just appear to be shallow and incompetent.
As Hebrews 13:4 points out, the marriage bed is undefiled.
In the context that your usage of the word chaste in relation to one who is married means undefiled by adultery, I can agree.
Outta all the gospels that’s all ya got to go on huh?
Hmm, well I hope you don’t mind if I don’t buy it.
Oh.....the Gospels....the Bible....Mark.....the New Testament.
So sorry about. Those sources aren’t acceptable to you?
My humble apologies.
I didn’t accuse anyone I mearly asked for some reasonable supporting evidence regarding what appears to me to be an absurd supposition from what has thus far been presented, neither am I implying that you broke any FR decorum but you seem to be leaping to some conclusion that I am.
I mean you no offense dear brother/sister in Christ, I am only unconvinced by your claims.
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