In order to organize the way that we go through the 7 deadly sins, we will follow the pattern that Dante gave us in the Purgatory. In the poem, he is being led in a vision through purgatory and he sees it as a vast mountain, near the bottom are the worst sins and near the top the lesser sins. The penitents climb the mountain, leaving sins behind and eventually attaining heaven. We are actually going to go backwards, down the mountain, starting with the lesser sins and working our way to the more grave ones. The sin that, while still deadly, is considered the least, is Lust.
Is Lust even a sin? (Obviously we know it is because it is one of the 7 deadly sins, but suspend belief with me for a moment.) It seems as though perhaps it is not a sin. After all, lust is not an action, it is not hurting anybody else, but it is a feeling. Typically, a sin is an action that we willfully carry out. We cannot be judged by what tempts us, after all, Our Lord was tempted in the desert for 40 days and we know that he never sinned.
However, Our Lord also says this, “27 You have heard that it was said to them of old: Thou shalt not commit adultery. 28 But I say to you, that whosoever shall look on a woman to lust after her, hath already committed adultery with her in his heart.” This is a part of the Sermon on the Mount, in which Jesus teaches us how to take the law, the rules and precepts of the moral life, and inscribe those rules on our hearts. We take the outward action and apply it to the inward soul. You see, God doesn’t just want to make you holy on the outside; he wants to make you holy and give you happiness and make you virtuous. God deals with the heart.
We would be committing a sin in our hearts if we entertain Lust, think about it and allow the desire to get out of control, allow the temptation to stick around and grow, take pleasure in imagining the possibilities of acting on it. We cannot help it if we are tempted, but we do have the responsibility when that happens to quickly tell Satan that he is wasting his time and to move on, and we do have the responsibility to avoid occasions when we know we will be tempted: the television show that is lascivious, what we look at on the internet, that sort of thing. We often think of lust in terms of physical desires, but it could also be for money, power, fame, food, whatever. So what are the near occasions of sin for these? Do we focus on how jealous we are of our neighbor’s new car or gadget, do we define our self worth by our salary or how much people respect us? Do we refuse the Eucharistic fast because we do not want to go without food?
God wants to help us in all of these areas where we find ourselves gripped by lust. When we fall into lust, we are enslaved by that which we desire. St. Isidore says (Etym. x), “a lustful man is one who is debauched with pleasures.” In other words, given over to them. You are far too valuable to become enslaved to a physical thing, your destiny is to live with God and the angels in heaven, your soul is more valuable than any thing in this world. When we are trapped in lust, we become less than what we are meant to be.
This is why lust is considered a deadly sin. It strikes at who we are as human beings. It actually inhibits human reason and twists our thoughts towards irrationality. Let me explain. Let’s say my neighbor gets a fancy new car. Meanwhile, my old camry is rusting in the garage, it smells like feet, the doorhandle has broken off and doesn’t work anymore. Naturally I lust after this new car. The lust makes me lose my reason, and I forget I actually have a pretty decent car, a lot of people don’t have a car at all, my neighbor is a good guy and I am happy for him, cars aren’t really all that important. I forget all those things because lust has made me lose my mind. My desires are disordered, I’ve lost perspective. This is what sin does to us!
Do you see how many other sins my lust is prompting me to commit? Jealousy, anger, wrath, greed…Remember that a vice, like a virtue, is a habit and defines our character. Let’s not allow our character to become that of someone who is unhappy and unpleasant.
For this reason, Dante would rather see Lust burned away by fire than remain inside of a person. The way we can do that in this life is by opposing Lust with the virtue of Chastity. Chastity is one of the fruits of the Spirit and it is a form of moderation. To be chaste isn’t a denial of good things, but a proper enjoyment of them within reason. For instance, we are all called to be chaste in our marriages, to treat our spouses with dignity and respect, to not lust after them unreasonably; but to delight in them and appreciate them. In this way, we don’t want them for ourselves but prefer to give ourselves to them.
In any area in which you struggle with lust, ask the Holy Spirit to help you become chaste.
Next week: gluttony