20120319 We serve God with purity of heart 潔心侍主
The sixth commandment is “You shall not commit adultery,” and the ninth commandment is “You shall not covet your neighbour’s wife.”
By the sixth commandment we are commanded to be pure and modest in our behaviour. The sixth commandment forbids all impurity and immodesty in words, looks, and actions, whether alone or with others.
Purity in actions
Human life is sacred because it is a precious gift from God, and sex is sacred because it is inseparable from human life. The proper context for sex is marriage. Husband and wife renew their marriage commitment to each other through sexual intimacy. Hence the deliberate seeking of sexual pleasure outside marriage is against chastity and is a mortal sin.
Examples of mortal sins against chastity are: viewing pornography, masturbation, fornication, and adultery.
An important safeguard for the virtue of chastity is modesty, especially modesty in looks and in dress. Modesty helps us to foster respect for the human person, whereas immodesty easily leads to treating others as sexual objects. Love and respect for oneself and for others motivate us to practise the virtue of chastity.
Purity of heart
What the sixth commandment forbids in words and actions the ninth commandment forbids in thoughts and desires. It forbids all thoughts and desires contrary to chastity, and commands us to be pure in thought and desire.
The Baltimore Catechism points out that “mere thoughts about impure things are not always sinful in themselves, but such thoughts are dangerous.”
“Thoughts about impure things become sinful when a person thinks of an unchaste act and deliberately takes pleasure in so thinking, or when unchaste desire or passion is aroused and consent is given to it.”
In times of temptation, instead of dialoguing with the temptation we should turn our mind away and turn to God in prayer. “Pray or flee” should be our response against impure temptation. St. Josemaria Escriva wrote, “As soon as you wilfully allow a dialogue with temptation to begin, the soul is robbed of its peace, just as consent to impurity destroys grace.”
Safeguards of purity
The principal means to safeguard chastity are vigilance and prayer. Vigilance removes dangers against chastity, whereas prayer brings down grace to strengthen chastity.
In the book My Catholic Faith, Bishop Louis LaRavoire Morrow pointed out. “The chief dangers to the virtue of chastity are: idleness, sinful curiosity, bad companions, drinking, immodest dress, and indecent books, plays, motion pictures, and television.”
For our modern society we must include the improper usage of Internet and digital devices.
Bishop Morrow wrote, “Idleness is the parent sin. Man is like the earth: if it is not planted with good seed, weeds grow on it fast. So a person is beset by all kinds of evil temptations unless he has some worthwhile occupation.”
Regarding prayer, St. John Bosco urged young people to achieve chastity through frequent Communion, frequent confession, and devotion to Our Lady.
One moral theologian pointed out that the most effective assistance for a young person to be chaste is daily Mass and Communion, for this practice requires both discipline and freedom from mortal sin. Anyone who is struggling with mortal sin should have frequent recourse to the sacrament of penance.
Devotion to Our Lady is extremely helpful for the virtue of chastity. Praying the rosary, wearing the brown scapular, and entrusting oneself to the Immaculate Heart are powerful devotional practices.
Father Tanquerey writes, “Her name breathes forth purity, and, it seems, no sooner do we confidently invoke her than temptation is put to flight.”
“The miracle of purity has prayer and mortification as its two points of support,” St. Josemaria Escriva said.
「天主十誡」中的第六誡「毋行邪淫」與第九誡「毋願他人妻」，都直指堅守潔德的必要。
第六誡要我們無論獨處或與人交往，品行均需純潔和端莊，嚴禁舉止言行的不潔和放縱。
純潔的行為
生命是天主的恩賜，所以，人的生命是神聖的，故此，亦引申到人的性行為也是神聖的，因為是人的生命之緣，藉夫婦的性行為而產生，緊緊繫於夫婦履行神聖的婚姻盟誓。按此，婚姻盟誓以外的性行為屬於不潔的大罪。
不潔相關的大罪包括觀賞色情書刊、自瀆、通姦和淫亂。有效堅守貞潔的方法是端莊，特別是眼目和衣著。端莊培養我們懂得尊重別人，不使自己和別人，淪為洩慾的工具。此外，真誠及互重，會促使我們守貞潔之德。
潔淨心靈
第六誡管制我們的言行，第九誡管制我們的思想和意欲，要我們清心寡慾，除絕一切違反貞潔的思念。
「博迪模天主教要理」指引說：不潔思想的浮現，不一定搆成罪污，但會使人陷入觸犯不潔大罪的危機。當一個人想象不潔的行為並故意從中尋求快感，或當不潔的渴望和情慾湧現時給予同意，便犯上不潔思想的大罪。
一旦思想上的誘惑出現時，我們避免對壘，只需把思想轉向，並投入祈禱領域中；簡單來說，「立即逃跑和祈禱」是對付不潔思想的方法。聖施禮華神父寫道：「當你在意願上容許不潔思想瀏漣時，靈魂便開始失去平安，就好似同意不潔使人失去聖寵。」
捍衛貞潔
警醒及祈禱，是捍衛貞潔的主要方法。警醒使我們認清和剔除犯邪淫罪的危險，祈禱能堅強我們守貞潔之德。
類斯.莫魯主教在他「我的天主教信仰」一書，指出導致破壞潔德的危險是: 游手好閒、不潔的好奇、敗德損友、放縱酗酒、衣著暴露、猥褻刊物和遊戲、淫慾的電影和電視節目等。身繫科技先進的今日，我們還要小心各式各樣的網絡媒體訊息。
莫魯主教續指出：「游手好閒是諸罪之母。人就如土壤，不播以善種，則雜植叢生。所以，沒有正當的專注，人便墮入各類的誘惑中。」
關於祈禱，聖若望.鮑思高神父勸勉年青人要以妥辦告解、勤領聖體，和孝敬聖母來捍衛潔德。
一位倫理神學家指出，年青人為保守潔德，參與每日彌撒和善領聖體，是最有效的方法，皆因此舉不獨需要有一顆克己和遠離大罪的心，同時亦促使負罪的人，願意儘快妥善辦告解，好能善領聖體。虔敬聖母也定能幫助我們守貞潔之德：誦唸玫瑰經、帶聖母聖衣、交托自己給聖母無玷聖心。鄧奎利神父描述稱：「聖母聖名，洋溢貞潔的芳香，我們一旦依附，任何誘惑，頓逃之夭夭。」
聖施禮華神父曾說過：「祈禱和克苦，是保守潔德的兩大支柱。」