Purity is the Lily Among Virtues
Saint Francis de Sales, doctor of the Love of God, once said; Purity is the lily among virtues by it men approach to the Angels. There is no beauty without purity.And St. John Bosco, disciple of the spirituality of the same saint had this exclamation:"Holy Purity, the queen of virtues, the angelic virtue, is a jewel so precious that those who possess it become like the angels of God in heaven, even though clothed in mortal flesh."
The virtue of Temperance, which is a cardinal virtue, (from the Latin cardo, a hinge, a door, that which holds, supports a door) so a cardinal virtue meaning a virtue that holds together the entire organism of virtues in human actions, temperance may be defined as the righteous habit which makes a man govern his natural appetite or tendency for pleasures of the senses in accordance with the norm prescribed by reason. To be able to practice the virtue of Temperance, two attitudes are necessary. If we want to follow saint Thomas Aquinas teaching, we must admit that shamefacedness and honesty are indeed necessary in the practice of temperance. First, shamefacedness which is the fear of something base, namely of that which is disgraceful. Saint John Damascene says that "shamefacedness is fear of a base action." And second, honesty which is a kind of spiritual beauty. Because honesty repels that which is most disgraceful, unbecoming, ugly to man. Therefore, always remember, if we want to practice the virtue of Temperance, we must first of all, cover ourselves with that white mantel of shamefacedness and honesty, in our actions, in our words, in our thoughts, and in our behavior in general. These two are at the very foundations of our moral life in accordance with the practice and acquisition of the virtue of Temperance. Without these two, no Temperance seems to be possible. We now have what constitutes the stem of what makes our soul this beautiful and odorous flower, this divine Lily, before all men. Temperance as the very seed, shamefacedness and honesty as the stem. Let us see now the different species we have under the general genus “Temperance”.
Abstinence, for all which refers to food, and Fasting as the proper act of Abstinence: as opposed to gluttony. And Sobriety to fight against drunkenness. Referring to the pleasure related to the conjugal act, we have the virtue of Chastity, and its particular part, Virginity, as the complete consecration of one’s body. Abstinence, sobriety, chastity and virginity, each one being one particular petal of our flower, each with its particular color.
The potential parts of the cardinal virtue of Temperance share something in common with that virtue but fall short of fully satisfying its formal definition. They fulfil only part of the definition of Temperance. Let’s consider them as the pistils, as part of the flower, as part of Temperance, but receiving something also from other virtues, like the pollen attached to the pistils but coming from other plants. And these potential parts are continence, as abstinence from even the licit gratifications of marriage, then kindness, meekness. Saint Francis de Sales tells us:“The person who possesses Christian meekness is affectionate and tender towards everyone: he is disposed to forgive and excuse the frailties of others; the goodness of his heart appears in a sweet affability that influences his words and actions, presents every object to his view in the most charitable and pleasing light.” and finally modesty,with its particular form: humility. This is the reason why Saint Philip Neri can say: “Humility is the safeguard of chastity. In the matter of purity, there is no greater danger than not fearing the danger. For my part, when I find a man secure of himself and without fear, I give him up for lost I am less alarmed for one who is tempted and who resists by avoiding the occasions, than for one who is not tempted and is not careful to avoid occasions. When a person puts himself in an occasion, saying, I shall not fall, it is an almost infallible sign that he will fall, and with great injury to his soul.”
We can see now, that purity is like the most pleasant smell of all the flowers.John Henry Cardinal Newman had this beautiful quote: "Purity prepares the soul for love, and love confirms the soul in purity."
For so is the will of God, that by doing well you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.
That by our example, our good and edifying example, we may shut the mouth of our enemy. And if you look carefully, our model, our Master was never ever attacked on his purity, his chastity. Everything in him was pure and no doubt possible about it because all these previous virtues we have just described where perfectly anchored, possessed, perfectly practiced, almost palpable in Christ. Let us not give any opportunity for the world, and for the devil to use us as instruments opposed to God, opposed to the teaching of the Church. We have, probably more than ever, the urgent necessity, obligation to give to the world the perfect opposite of what the world offers us; that is a denatured sexuality, a denatured notion of love, of self-giving. As for anything in moral life, and in our apostolate, the best teaching we can give around us is the clear and resplendent example of our own life, of our own righteousness. This is the church militant! We have to do with princedoms and powers, with those who have mastery of the world in these dark days, with malign influences in an order higher than ours.Says the great Apostle. But again: refrain yourselves from carnal desires which war against the soul. We are at war. Be exceedingly quick in turning aside from the slightest thing leading to impurity, says Saint Francis de Sales, for it is an evil which approaches stealthily, and in which the very smallest beginnings are apt to grow rapidly. It is always easier to flee from such evils than to cure them. But don’t beat yourself up after a setback. The devil wants you to give up. Seek forgiveness and start again, no matter how humbling or hard it may be. God always forgives and always loves, his loves is not deterred because of our faults but on our part however, our faults if not quickly confessed, atoned for and fought, our faults will diminish our capacity to accept His Love and in return to give Him the Love He deserves without any compromise. When we find ourselves or others falling again and again in the same bad habit, in the same imperfection, the same sin, instead of falling into despair or at least discouragement, listen to what the great St Francis de Sales has to tell us and that will be my conclusion: Of course one should die rather than consciously and deliberately offend God, he says, but if we fall, we should try to be prepared to do everything before losing enthusiasm, hope, and resolve. Rise up immediately as if you had not fallen.”
And above all, let us have recourse to Mary, the purest lily: "I am the Rose of Sharon, the lily of the valleys."Says the Song of Songs. Flower never withered. We should not go to bed without saying a few Hail Mary’s. Holding constantly her hand, we are sure never to sink into the abyss of despair. Mother most pure, pray for us. Jesus meek and humble of heart, make our hearts like unto Thine!
Canon Jean-Baptiste Commins
