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The dangers which beset the lily of chastity are numerous and great. This is a thought upon which I have repeatedly dwelt; and it is calculated to fill even the most pious heart with fear and apprehension. What is the enemy most to be dreaded, the enemy which continually seeks to destroy the fair lily of innocence? This foe is not far from each one of us; it is to be found within; it dwells in our own heart. You are as yet chaste and pure; you regard sin with loathing and abhorrence; do not therefore be too much alarmed if I proceed to place before you the full extent of the peril to which you are exposed at the hands of this enemy. It was not without good reason that I exhorted you, in my last instruction, to take courage and have confidence in God. I shall indeed recur to this subject again and again, and point out to you what our holy religion teaches in this respect, for the consolation of all who have a good will.
A blush of shame mantles the blooming cheek of every modest maiden if she hears even one unchaste word. We find that the ancient heathen entertained feelings of a similar kind; they sought to hide sin from the sight of their fellow men under cover of the darkness of night. They regarded the subjugation of sensual desires as something great, elevated, and meritorious. St. Jerome tells us that in olden days Roman emperors and statesmen treated maidens who had been faithful to their vow of chastity with outward marks of respect; while those who had broken their vow met with aversion and contempt, and were put to death. Not only was it engraved upon the tables of stone which God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai; it is also written on the pages of man’s conscience: Thou shall not commit adultery or any impurity.
Is it not difficult to believe that, in spite of the voice of conscience, in spite of the unanimous conviction of every nation, this vice of impurity, thus universally held to be shameful and degrading, is yet indulged in so constantly? How is this fact to be reconciled with reason and conscience? St. Paul answers this question in the name of all mankind: “I see another law in my members, fighting against the law of my mind, and captivating me in the law of sin, that is in my members. Unhappy man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death? The grace of God, by Jesus Christ our Lord.”
By these words the Apostle intends us to understand that our reason, our higher self, recognizes in, especially sins against chastity, as an evil, and regards them with abhorrence; that there is however within us a concupiscence, an inclination, a proneness to evil, which allures us, and that this tendency can be resisted and overcome through the grace of Jesus Christ. It is precisely this concupiscence, this proneness to evil, resulting from original sin, which constitutes the first and the most dangerous adversary of the lily of purity it is the enemy in our own heart.
An impure thought often steals unperceived into the heart without its evil nature being recognized at once; sinful images are awakened; the imagination clothes them with form and color; sensual desires are stirred up; and the individual finds himself all at once in danger of losing God, of forfeiting heaven and eternal happiness.
Two great mistakes are made concerning this enemy in our own heart and the temptations it excites. Some persons have an exaggerated dread of evil thoughts, but most persons fear them too little. I will say a few words on both points. For instance, if you were merely to say in confession that you have unchaste thoughts everyday the priest would not be in the least able to form an opinion as to the sinfulness of these thoughts. In the midst of all these evil thoughts and imaginings your soul may be as white and pure and stainless as a fair lily, as pleasing to God as the soul of a child which has just been borne away from the baptismal font; the days and hours when you have had these evil thoughts may have been all noted down by your guardian angel, not indeed to terrify you and put you to shame when your life is drawing to a close, but, on the contrary, that he may be able to say to you: “Behold, O chaste soul, for each one of these hours and moments you shall receive a bright and unfading crown of victory.”
An evil thought which is involuntary is not a sin; it is only a temptation, and affords us an opportunity to fight and conquer, to gain merit for eternity.
St. Augustine compares evil thoughts to the first sin in paradise, in which these three took part, viz., the serpent, Eve and Adam. The serpent suggested to the mind of Eve the idea of breaking the command of God; Eve took pleasure in the thought, and advised Adam to carry it into action; Adam followed her advice and sinned. The first beginning of an evil thought may be compared to the suggestions of the serpent. Eve represents the lower nature, which takes delight in the contemplation of sin; in the person of Adam we see the human will, which, agreeing to the proposal of Eve, completes the sinful act. If an impure thought enters our mind it is not a sin, so long as our free will definitely refuses its consent, and we take no pleasure in it.
There are, however, dark recesses in the heart of man. A man may not know himself, and on this account be unable to place his mental condition before his confessor in as clear a light as that in which the eye of God beholds him. Therefore remark that there are two ways in which our free will may give its consent.
In the first place we may sin through desire if we wish to have the opportunity of doing, seeing, or hearing that which is wrong; or we may sin in reference to the past if we reflect with satisfaction on sins into which we have fallen, and wish to commit them over again. These voluntary wishes and desires are grievous sins, as both faith and reason plainly tell us.
In the second place, the will may give its consent by merely finding pleasure in impure images and thoughts, even without any wish to commit sin. This conscious and voluntary satisfaction, this pleasure in scenes and ideas of such a nature is also a grievous sin.
From what I have just said you may gather an important practical lesson: Be ever on your guard against the enemy in your own heart, and, without distressing yourself too much about involuntary impure thoughts, ever be on your guard against them.
What makes thy life on earth most fair?
How can’st thou best for heaven prepare?
Thy soul from sin’s dark stain preserve,
Seek God’s approval to deserve.