Yesterday was the feast of St. Charles Lawanga and the Ugandan martyrs. Charles was chief of pages for King Mwanga who was a ritual pedophile. In his position Charles protected the boys from the sexual abuse of the king. Eventually he evoked the regal ire and he was burned to death with a group of his companions. When they were lighting the fire to burn him he said: "It is like you are pouring water on me. Please repent for your sins." He is the patron saint of African youth.
He reminds us of St. Maria Gioretti who protected her chastity to the point of being stabbed multiple times and then forgave her attacker. Similarly St. Maximilian Kolbe in his youth was offered, by our Blessed Mother, the red cup of martyrdom or the white cup of chastity. He chose both; went on to consecrate his life in purity to Mary; and die a martyr and a hero in Auschwitz.
We see in these and a litany of saints the conjunction of three qualities of holiness: sexual chastity, courage in the face of suffering, and merciful forgiveness. They go together as a package deal.
We see in Charles and Mwanga that there are two, only two, orientations regarding sexuality: chastity and unchastity. That is the choice that each of us must make. As a result of original sin we are afflicted with concupiscence, disordered sexual feelings, attractions, urges. That we have such troubling feelings cannot be helped. What matters is what we do with them. Our basic choice is for or against chastity: this is a hard binary; there is no compromise or middle position; in the long term, war to the death.
Our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit whom we received in baptism and confirmation. My body, masculine or feminine, is sacred and to be revered. I am myself, in my masculinity or femininity, to be revered by myself and others, regardless of my attractions. Sexuality is especially holy because it penetrates to the depths of ones heart, intellect, will and soul. It is the way God chose to create new children, eternal souls. It is the privileged expression of unity between spouses in marriage.
Sins against chastity are sacrilegious because of the sacredness of our sexuality. Sexual sin of abuse is worse than stealing money, or beating him up, of spreading false rumors...because these are more superficial, less deep. This even applies to consensual, affectionate engagement between non-married adults. I may feel completely in love with my partner and wish no harm but objectively violate her and my chastity and leave her and myself. damaged unintentionally.
So sins against chastity are serious. With the internet and especially among young men the use of pornography with masturbation has become an epidemic. This is serious. This is a sin which must be confessed as self-centered and a violation of the very meaning of sex as union, self-gift, and fruitful.
The chaste life can be difficult, almost impossible for some who suffer loneliness, insecurity, anxiety and can be desperate for relief. For this reason the Catholic Catechism says that the guilt for such sin can be diminished due to the subjective weakness of the person. The Church is quick to forgive in the sacrament of penance.
While sins against chastity are objectively grave, the guilt or culpability is often diminished because of the subjective intent and understanding. Weakness of the flesh in the form of desperate loneliness, isolation, and anxiety as well as overwhelming passions of attraction and euphoria can leave one in a cloud of confusion. Additionally, the seductive influence of a "world" removed from God can leave a conscience that is erroneous and does not even think there is anything wrong with the action. In no arena as much as sex do Jesus' words pertain: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."
Sexual intercourse outside of marriage violates our purity and that of our partner. Even within marriage, certain acts are inherently wrong: wholesome, holy sex culminates with the release of the seed of life from the male penis in the female vagina in an act that is unitive, open to new life, and blessed by God. Violations include oral, manual, and anal sex (sodomy). These are wrong for everyone, married or single, homosexual or heterosexual. They are wrong in themselves. St. Charles Lawanga and his companions chose to be burned to death rather than partake in these acts.
June is the month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus: his human/divine heart which is absolutely pure and suffered to give us new life. This is associated with the Immaculate Heart of Mary which was pure and free of sin from her conception. A third heart is the chaste heart of St. Joseph, really married to Mary, loved her tenderly, reverently and chastely.
June is a magnificent month: sweet temperature, end of school, Maine, Pentecost, weddings, and the three hearts of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. We are invited to come close to these three to be under their influence, in all the virtues and especially purity. Difficult as it can be and weak of flesh as many of us are, our Lord gives us nevertheless what we need to grow in chastity: prayer, confession and Eucharist, wholesome family, friends, study, work, activities. But we must choose it and seek it, getting up and moving on when we fall.
This brings us to the sad topic of Gay Pride Month. The message of the LGBTQ+ movement is: the sexual acts performed by homosexuals (manual, anal, oral) are good-true-beautiful and morally equivalent to the unitive/fruitful intercourse of husband and wife within marriage. And so we have parades, dramatic gestures and celebrations to celebrate "pride" about these acts.
This is a tremendous scandal as it encourages people to sin. To affirm, applaud, encourage and enable sinful acts is to collaborate in them. It is the sin of scandal: of leading others into sin. A sin of "false witness" against commandment 8 as well as 6 and 9. Jesus warned that it would be better that one not be born than to lead a little one into sin; to have a grindstone tied around one's neck and be cast into the sea. Pride month is a celebration of sin and impurity.
As we celebrate Pentecost, the culmination of the Catholic year, let us invoke the Holy Spirit: that we all grow in chastity; that we give true witness to the purity of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, along with Saints Charles, Maria and Max; and that those we love be protected from the falsehood and temptation of unchastity! Come Holy Spirit!
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