Sep 30 Sat
Holy purity is an action of love.
“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” St Paul invites us to focus our hope in heaven, where God reigns in glory, and to detach ourselves from material things. For this, chastity is necessary, “in a positive way, as a consequence of our love, our self-giving to God, body and soul, with all our faculties and senses.” Only love can lead us to live our life for God and to be concerned for others. Only love for God is capable of preserving the purity of heart we need for our life of service.
Purity “is not a renunciation, but a joyful affirmation, a free and cheerful self-giving. Your chastity cannot be limited to avoiding falls and occasions of sin..., it cannot in any way be a cold and mathematical denial. Do you realize that chastity is a virtue, and that, as such, it ought to grow and be perfected? It's not enough, then, for you to be continent, according to your state in life: you must be chaste, heroically so. It is an affirmation, a positive act, a response to God's plea: my son, give me your heart, and set your eyes on my ways.”
St Augustine says: “There is a war being waged in our very bodies; our lives are a dangerous battleground. And victory is impossible without the help of the One who loves us ... Do you want your flesh to obey your soul? Then have your soul serve God. In order to govern yourself, you must let yourself be governed by Him.” Here lies the positive struggle in the area of purity which Saint Josemaría showed us to be so necessary.
“Holy purity is given by God when it is asked for with humility. We will advance with the help of God's grace, not like angels - that would be a disorder, since angels have a different nature from ours - but like clean, strong men and women, normal people! What so many people do for the sake of their home, what our parents did through their life of Christian fidelity, let us also do for the sake of the Love of all loves.
Therefore, have a great love for holy purity! Invoke the Virgin Mary, Mother of Fair Love, and we will persevere -cheerful and supernaturally fruitful- along this divine Path God wants for us.”
“If you ever sense that this gift from God is in danger, don't be surprised, since as I've already told you, we are made of clay. Advance, in your commitment to control your imagination, and in so many small but effective details that both safeguard and reflect the quality of your determination.”
And do not forget, modesty and temperance are necessary for purity.
Video: