One, if one is a Catholic, one is responsible for learning the Faith. We have the CCC and the long, 2,000 years of history of the Catholic Church for information. In this information age, there is no excuse for not knowing something. More than 60% of households in Great Britain, Ireland and America are connected to the Internet. We can buy plane tickets, order food, order clothes, find mates and chat with our friends daily. We can also read the Vatican website and the CCC online, as well as other excellent sources, such as EWTN and others. Even children can find out the truth and I now at least four very young children (ages 8-12) who chose to be Catholics when their parents were not.
Two, the Natural Law, embedded in all humans by the very fact that they are human tell us when something is right or wrong, unless we have lived a life of perversion and keep choosing that over truth. Again, if we are sensitive, our natural consciences will dictate what is immoral and what is moral. The Greeks and Romans knew this and the early philosophers wrote on what was human and what was sub-human behavior. It is the errors of Modernist heresies which have deadened natural law philosophy, especially in the States, where is it no longer taught in some law schools.
Three, the habit of sin must be broken. And, the longer we are in sin, the harder it is to break those habits. Guilt is not a bad thing regarding habitual sin. Habitual sin becomes addictive and addictive sin is living in sin. St. Thomas Aquinas says that it takes one year to break a habit of sin, such as lying, and only three months to develop a virtue. I think he had personal experience of this. We cannot make excuses for habitual sins of any type, such as masturbation or lying. These must be taken to Confession weekly, and with a good, orthodox Confessor, can be broken. Sometimes healing is necessary and both a spiritual director and a counselor who is Catholic and sound can be very helpful. But, the sin must be broken. This is what is means to carry the Cross of our weaknesses. But, tendency, which is concupiscence, is not an excuse. We all have concupiscence because of Original Sin.
Four, temptation is not sin. Sin is the dwelling on the temptation or the action. If an idea crosses our mind of something sinful, we can actively say "no" to the thought and deed.
Five, we all have weaknesses. These our both our Crosses and our way to holiness. Weaknesses are both in the body and in the will. We must practice the strengthening of the will. Weakness equals concupiscence. Modern society does not see weakness in itself as an occasion of sin, but it is.
I can give an example. A good woman I knew years ago had a compulsion for shopping. She spent money and used her credit card to the point of bad stewardship. She got into debt. Thankfully, she was a praying Catholic and realized one day that she just could not go shopping. She had to avoid the malls and shops. She did that and succeeded in overcoming her desires. She also prayed for the opposite virtue of these sins of gluttony and vanity by practicing "custody of the eyes". She did not look anymore at Vogue, or other fashion magazines. She controlled her eyes when on the street. She asked God for humility and simplicity. She prayed to Mary and did this on her own. She succeeded in overcoming the need, the compulsion, the sin of vanity. I admire this person and hope that she can overcome pride in other areas of her life. She is very open about this and knows that the life of virtue will lead her to heaven, eventually.
When one gives in to sin, one creates a habit and, possibly, an addiction. If one has an addictive personality, to pornography, for example, the first cause of divorce in the States today, one needs to be very strict with one's self. We have lost the idea of discipline. But the only way to overcome such is through prayer, fasting, the sacraments, the opposite virtues.
Six, sins and weaknesses are OBJECTIVE not SUBJECTIVE. Once society forgets that there is objective evil, sin becomes rampant. Herein lies our culpability. Stealing. adultery, masturbation. sodomy, etc. are objectively evil. Therefore, each person has some level of culpability. Even the young person who has been abused must accept the fact that he or she does not have to live a life of abuse or sexual promiscuity because of that abuse. This is the fact of heroic virtue. One chooses the hard way. A person may have the strength of will to do this on his own, but he needs Catholic, orthodox help is the will is weak. We are never without some responsibility for sinning. And being sinned against is no excuse for sinning. I speak from experience in that regard.
Sadly, Thomistic philosophy has not been taught for years in seminaries, so many priests are confused themselves on the overlap of sin and will. I cannot see that masturbation as explained in the CCC is never sinful. It is always sinful, always, as is any addictive behavior which destroys the body or the soul. If one is that weak in the will, the will must be made strong again. Culpability is lessened, but to stop taking that sin to Confession will only add to the problem. Weaknesses must be confessed on a regular basis. Here is a quotation from an excellent section which I recommend to all readers:
2352 By masturbation is to be understood the deliberate stimulation of the genital organs in order to derive sexual pleasure. "Both the Magisterium of the Church, in the course of a constant tradition, and the moral sense of the faithful have been in no doubt and have firmly maintained that masturbation is an intrinsically and gravely disordered action."138 "The deliberate use of the sexual faculty, for whatever reason, outside of marriage is essentially contrary to its purpose." For here sexual pleasure is sought outside of "the sexual relationship which is demanded by the moral order and in which the total meaning of mutual self-giving and human procreation in the context of true love is achieved."139
To form an equitable judgment about the subjects' moral responsibility and to guide pastoral action, one must take into account the affective immaturity, force of acquired habit, conditions of anxiety or other psychological or social factors that lessen, if not even reduce to a minimum, moral culpability.
That passage does not deny sin. The levels of culpability should change as one becomes more aware, more holy. But, one does not need to be trapped in sin all one's life. That is the beauty of the Sacramental Life.
A good simile is from St. Teresa of Avila, who wrote that as we become more holy, the light of grace shines in us and shows us the smallest sin as a great shadow. The brighter the sun, the longer and more dark the shadow. That is the type of conscience we are called to in the life of the virtues. She said: One venial sin can do us greater harm than all the forces of hell combined.
Last point, which is seven. Grace is greater than nature or nurture. To deny that grace changes us is to deny the Teaching of the Catholic Church. Christ gives us this grace daily, and those who have addictions can win the battle by daily Communion, weekly Confession and good friends and companions.
We must fight against mortal sin. We must then fight against venial sin. We must then fight against imperfections. Otherwise, we shall never see God. We do not fight alone, but with the help of grace and knowledge, we can win. God never abandons us.
God bless my good reader.
We must fight against mortal sin. We must then fight against venial sin. We must then fight against imperfections. Otherwise, we shall never see God. We do not fight alone, but with the help of grace and knowledge, we can win. God never abandons us.
God bless my good reader.