The Principle of Chastity

Probably the least popular Christian virtue is the principle of chastity. Chastity is defined as being pure in thought and act, or innocent of unlawful sexual intercourse. Lewis suggests that Christians should be "either in marriage, with complete faithfulness to your partner, or else total absitinence". This is so contrary to our instincts, but if applied correctly can be very beneficial to our spiritual growth.

There is a difference between chastity and propriety. Chastity is something usually thought of as a physical state. However, propriety depends on the society. For example, the women found in the Middle East tend to dress very modestly, sometimes only showing their eyes and hands. Conversely, women in Hawaii are much less modest, often found in bikinis. Both are dressed in accordance to culture, but very different in terms of modesty.

Many people today try to pass off the sexual instinct as the same as any other instinct, like physical hunger. Lewis proves this incorrect. For example, when we feed our food instinct, we usually eat enough to feed just one person, although it is possible to eat for either two or three. Nevertheless, when it comes to the sexual instinct, if a person were to 'feed' that instinct until the hunger was gone; it would be possible to populate a small village.

If our sexual nature were not the same as another nature why would God command us to be chaste until marriage if it was contrary to our nature? The answer to this is that it was not always contrary to our nature. When we were perfect human beings, all sexual conduct done by Adam and Eve would have been pleasing to God. However, due to our sin nature, our social attitudes and practices are warped, perverse, and destructive.

It is hard for us to overcome our perversion for three reasons. First, indulging in sexuality is encouraged by society as being healthy, normal, and youthful. However, sexual indulgence usually leads to more problems than help. This is evident in the society today, where one in four STDs occur in teens. Even if it is not seen as popular, if you follow God's command to purity, you will save yourself a lot of worry and problems.

Secondly, society also preaches that chastity is impossible. Promiscuity is promoted in all forms of media, be it songs, movies, TV shows, or books. Fortunately, for Christians, people can usually do what is at first deemed to be impossible. Just as a small child claims it is 'impossible' to ride a bike, eventually he learns to ride. We must be the same in God's command to be chaste.