Religious and Monastic Life Explained by Dom Prosper Guéranger ~ Chapter XI: On the Evangelical Counsels ~ 2. On Chastity.

The second of the evangelical counsels is chastity, to which our Lord directs our attention when He calls those blessed who have renounced the pleasures of sense “for the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. xix, 12.) St. Paul unfolds to us also its importance when he proposes perfect continency as that which is “better for man” (I Cor. vii, 38), because it sanctifies man in body and soul. But since chastity is a virtue imposed on all men, even outside of the religious state, - though it reaches its perfection only in this state - it is expedient forthwith to expose the whole Christian doctrine on this subject, that such an important matter may be fully comprehended.

The holy virtue of chastity seeks to control the sensual appetites by subjecting them to the law of the Spirit. It maintains man in his dignity and causes his soul continually to reflect the image of God who is a spirit. The vice opposed to chastity degrades man, reverses the economy of creation by giving predominance to the lower element and stifling the soul under the pressure of the senses. Nothing could be more adverse to the decrees of the Creator. He, therefore, willed to join the obligation of continency to the exercise of the very rights he conceded to the conjugal state. It is in obedience to a fundamental principle of his existence that man should constantly strive to shake off the yoke of the senses. Not only every exterior act against holy purity is forbidden to him, but he is likewise bound to secure heart and soul against every wilful desire or delight in respect to that which is forbidden by this virtue. Such is the delicacy of holy purity that the infringement of its obligations does not admit lightness of matter; want of sufficient consideration or imperfect consent may alone render venial a sin which would have been mortal otherwise.

From this it follows, that man should avail himself of every means to persevere in holy purity, because this virtue is indispensable for him. Now there are two obstacles which bring it about that this virtue can exist in us only by dint of warfare. In the first place, we are, in consequence of original sin, loaded with the weight of concupiscence, which destroys the equilibrium between the flesh and the spirit, and makes the former, weak as it is, the tyrant over the latter. In the second place, the holy virtue of chastity is an object of particular hatred to the devil, who is humiliated on seeing man ascend, through chastity, by the spirit; notwithstanding his human weakness. Wherefore this fallen angel is always ready to attack us from what he knows to be our weakest side.

Man, nevertheless, must not consider his condition too hard, when he finds himself obliged to struggle for the preservation of such a noble and powerful virtue. God never imposes on His creatures a burden which they cannot bear. However great the weakness of our fallen nature may be, the grace of Jesus Christ is superabundantly placed at our disposal, to equalize our forces in the light. We shall not be tried above our strength: the justice and goodness of God are our vouchers for this. The temptations, to which we may be subjected should not make us dejected or faint-hearted; they should rather animate us to strive after a virtue against which Satan manifests such relentless fury.

It is incumbent on every man to preserve continence according to his state and to live in the esteem of a virtue so beautiful and so necessary that its violation suffices to plunge him into the lowest, most vile state; to ruin the powers of his body; to blindfold his reason; to instigate him to trample under foot even the most sacred obligations. But our Lord, who came for the complete restoration of human nature, has graciously inspired us to pursue a higher way, where holy purity not only serves to maintain his purity and to save him from disorder, but, likewise, raises him from his lowly condition and unites him with God. Blessed is the man who comprehends and tastes the sweetness of this word; who could add to the renunciation of earthly goods the absolute renunciation of even those sensual pleasures which are lawful and sanctioned by an august sacrament, in a lower calling, by reason of the end that accompanies them. Blessed is he to whom it has been given by divine grace to choose, in this life, the state which all the elect enjoy in the heavenly fatherland, where, as our Lord tells us, we shall be like angels!

Perfect continency, embraced by man with the intention of complying with the second counsel of our Lord, seeks to establish in man a new degree of resemblance to his divine model. It includes a sacrifice the homage of which is received by God with particular satisfaction. It obliterates that division in which consists, according to St. Paul, the relative imperfection of the most holy marriage. It is the occasion of an eternal bond with God, which imprints on the entire person an indelible mark of glory that merits for him from God a love not bestowed on others. It reserves for God not only inanimate objects, as religious poverty does, but the human creature, which there upon enters into a contract with God, as the spouse with the bridegroom. It is a state of liberty, in regard to the senses, which it purifies and sanctifies; it is the sweet scent of the earth, which freely mingles with that of heaven; it is an object of reverence on the part of the most worldly men, so that the heathen nations of old could not refrain from bowing down before it in homage.

Conceiving such sublime notions of religious chastity, let us always bear in mind that this virtue vowed by the religious soul is prized so dearly that its slightest infraction must necessarily be a grave offence against God. Even the lowest degree of this virtue is accompanied by immense merit. A transformation takes place in the entire person. United to God by the most sacred contract with which He ever favoured man, fidelity is the first duty of the favoured soul. Hence, not only the breaking of this bond would be a fearful sacrilege, but every mortal or venial sin which would inculpate, in this matter of impurity, a man not bound to God by the holy vows would involve, on the part of the unfaithful religious, also the malice of sacrilege, corresponding to the enormity of the fault, just as every violation of conjugal fidelity is tainted with the malice of adultery.

Take care, therefore, to temper with holy fear the just enthusiasm which ought to be stirred in you by this sublime engagement, a contract according to which you will share the life of the angels. Humbly aspiring to the consummation of this bond which shall attach you to God forever, inquire diligently into the various means by which you may be able to fulfil it with honour and fidelity.

The first means is to realize during your whole life and under all circumstances that, in his fallen state, man cannot, by his own efforts obtain and preserve the heavenly gift of chastity, but that God alone can bestow it upon us and preserve it in us. Therefore, we must incessantly call to our assistance the divine help, asking our Lord with confidence graciously to extend His powerful hand over us, and we must redouble our entreaties at the rising wind of temptation. Very conducive to the attainment of chastity is recourse to Mary, because she has received the special prerogative of aiding those who faithfully defend a virtue of which she is, before all other creatures, the most perfect and magnificent expression, being styled by the Church the “Virgin of virgins.” Of great help also is devotion to the holy angels, to St. Joseph, to our holy Patriarch and to the Saints of both sexes who have preserved unspotted the lily of virginal purity.

The second means consists in the frequent reception of the Holy Eucharist. Being the most pure body of the Incarnate Son of God, it has the special virtue of abating the rebellion of the flesh. In as much as this august sacrament transforms man in Jesus Christ, it speedily weakens concupiscence, spiritualizes the cravings of the heart, enlightens the intellect and plants in the soul a perception of the sanctity of God together with the desire of following this sanctity as a norm. Repulsed by his enemy, the devil flees from him, and if he does not yield completely at first, he nevertheless knows that his empire is threatened and in time withdraws altogether from a soul which worthily and frequently has recourse to such a powerful remedy.

The third means consists in the preservation and gradual development of the spirit of faith, which continually places before our mind the salutary truths revealed by the merciful God. He who is ever conscious of the bounty of God manifested to man in the mysteries of the Incarnation and Redemption; he who can form for himself a true estimate of sanctifying grace which assures him the eternal possession of God; he who trembles at the thought of judgment and hell, - such a one has nothing to fear. Firmly established on the rock of faith, he shall not be hurled down by temptation; very often it will attack him without being able to move him at all.

The fourth means consists in loving and practising humility. God has established a mysterious relation between humility and chastity; Satan has set up a similar one between pride and impurity. This observation was made long ago by the masters of the spiritual life, and constant experience proves it very true. Always be humble and it will then be easy for you to remain chaste. When labouring under temptation, accept humiliations with courage, seek them and impose them on yourselves, and you will feel, before long, that Satan’s power over you is broken and that the tempest is succeeded by a calm.

The fifth means is a sincere delicacy of conscience, which takes alarm at whatsoever may menace holy chastity, whether it be in the senses or in the imagination. This delicacy, based on faithfulness and not on scrupulosity or narrow-mindedness, notes the slightest motion on the part of the enemy and is never easy as to his intentions, which are as treacherous as they are hostile. It recognizes the weak points in its line of defence and watches them most closely. A slight warning, a wound, however insignificant, is enough to prompt constant vigilance at the vulnerable spot. In fine, it is on the look-out for all the illusions of a false conscience, which have been the cause of ruin for so many.

The sixth means consists in constant control of the imaginations, by checking their wantonness. Restraint and modesty of looks are absolutely necessary to everyone who wishes to practise chastity; they belong, at the same time, to the monastic decorum. The resolutions to be taken against the other senses should reach as far as experience has proved the danger to extend. As to the imagination, it is necessary to know that everything, not only what is sinful, but also what may become hurtful, must be cut off without delay, and that reveries and laziness of mind must be constantly distrusted.

The seventh means consists in the mortification of the body. Hardships voluntarily imposed on the flesh diminish its influence and check its insolence. By habitually chastising the body, we take a salutary precaution and can easily gather enough strength for a successful repulse. Be instructed by the example of our holy Patriarch, who acquired chastity by suffering. Learn to be unremitting in the practice of penance, and you shall also, in your turn, gain a sure and lasting victory over concupiscence.

The eighth means consists in the esteem and love of holy purity. Never look upon it as bondage, but as freedom. There are, no doubt, souls which God leads by the way of long and weary temptations. In this He purposes His glory and the triumph of grace. He often sends trials of this kind to prevent greater dangers which threaten these souls. He keeps them, thereby, in humility and opens to them an immense source of merit. But this is not the way of God in respect to most of us. On the contrary, we know from experience that chastity, when loved and resolutely guarded, soon becomes easy in practice; the curbed senses are ruled without great effort; the imagination, subdued by the consideration of the teachings of faith, no longer goes astray; the purified heart seeks God in simplicity and finds Him. Gloomy solicitude about chastity is often more hurtful than beneficial. Prove yourselves simple and upright in this and the other points, and you shall find peace and joy for your souls.